FusionFall: A Soldier's Record
by SilyaBeeodess
Summary: I write a bunch of FusionFall stories over on tumblr, so I decided to compile them here. Expect this to feature all sorts of characters and storylines, but the main character will still primarily be the one I play as in the game. If you'd like to check out my stories, headcanons, and prompts ahead of time, please find me over on my blog: It's the same user as on here.
1. Sweets by the Seaside

**Summer 2019 Contest Entry: Sweets by the Seaside**

Orchid Bay and Bravo Beach might've been two of the top summer vacation spots, but Silya had a certain fondness for Candy Cove. It was surrounded by a lush forest that kept it isolated from the neighborhood—keeping city noise and the amount of people bustling around it to a minimum. More importantly though, if you passed the resting place of the _Sweet Revenge _and followed the creek all the way to the sea, there were none of Fuse's monsters stalking about to ruin an otherwise perfect day by the shore.

Unfortunately, the Fusion Fighter leaders thought the same thing. They had turned the ideal spot into one of their more secretive bases of operations. As a result, they were always monitoring who came and went from the area. Numbuh 20,000 was one of the worst sticklers assigned to the cove, chasing away almost everyone who wasn't there on duty. If it weren't for Stickybeard and his crew, the place would've just become another dull mark of war.

Stickybeard wasn't a part of the top rung of leaders, but he was one of everyone's favorites. He led with a boisterousness that was easy to rally behind, replacing the fear of battle with the thrill of adventure. He made Candy Cove's base lively. Better still, he handed out some of the best missions—easy and fun jobs that were often a much-needed respite from the war effort. There was no doubt in Silya's mind that any Fusion Fighter called to his side would come running. That went for herself too: The instant she had received a transmission from him to come to the cove, she readied her nanos, packed her supplies, and left.

Dozens of Fusion Fighters had rushed over. After passing the sentries that kept the Candy Buccaneers at bay, Silya found herself standing on the coast with a swarm of her fellow soldiers hanging out by the water. Some of them chatted with each other, catching one another up on their adventures. Most swam close to the shoreline, took turns jumping off the nearby cliffs, or reclined on hastily strapped-together rafts. A few used their hoverbikes as improvised jet skis over the shallow waves. One group had even brought a picnic. A self-respecting warrior would balk at the rowdy mob that had gathered just to have a good time all while the war raged on.

That's what made it perfect. Moments like this were what kept hope alive.

Silya stumbled forward as she was greeted with a forceful slap to the back, "Here ye are, lass! Shufflin' in with the stragglers, are ye?"

She'd recognize the red, burly mat of hair tangled with lollipops any day. She gave the pirate a light smirk, "Considering how I had to slip away from Dex and Mandark, I'm probably lucky to be here at all."

Stickybeard guffawed at that, walking with her to the water's edge, "Sounds like those two boys could use some time out of the lab themselves. I hope ye know that I didn't just call all of ye here fer a swim though." Looping an arm over her shoulders, he directed her gaze out to sea, "Fuse's goons blasted a hole in me ship b'fore we could pull her onto land and try to turn her around. We thought we lost most of our candy when the infection took over. Turns out that a good part of it spilled out into the water first."

"And you want help getting it back."

"Aye! There's not enough hands to go around: We needed a few extra sweet-tooths with strong backs to lift it all." He turned to bark orders at the Fusion Fighters standing around, "That goes fer you lot! Ye can have yer fun, but ye better scrape every bit of candy off the seafloor! And a portion of the bounty to whoever rounds up enough of it!" As though to highlight his point, he tore a lollipop from his beard and plopped it into his mouth.

_Aye aye, captain! _The crowd lifted in a short chorus of cheers in reply and Stickybeard marched off. Silya paused to watch him go before hitting a few controls on her belt and kneeling to fetch some goggles and an oxygen mask from her pack. Streaks of red, blue, and gold danced around her as she summoned her nanos. As she readied her equipment, the trio hovered close by to wait for orders:

"Mandy, use your Finder ability to scan for anything under the water," she began to direct as she double-checked the mask's filter, "Four Arms, help collect any loose pieces of candy that may have sunk to the bottom. Courage…"

She looked down to the little, pink canine that stayed low to the sand, gazing meekly at the water and the large group of Fusion Fighters that surrounded them. He was one of her newest nanos and he hadn't seen much experience out in the field. She had hoped taking a bit of a break would help him find his place on the team. However, somehow, he was even more anxious than the original Courage: It was going to take some time.

She gave him a reassuring grin, pointing over to a less crowded section of the beach, "Anything we miss could wash up on shore, so wait for us and see what you can scavenge on land."

He blinked back up at her for a moment, then gave a somewhat relieved smile and nodded.

Within a few minutes, they had laid out a place for him and set their belongings aside. Nano Mandy darted off ahead to begin the search. The chill of the water seeped through Silya's wetsuit as she waded in, biting down on the rebreather's mouthpiece and adjusting the goggles over her eyes. As she ducked beneath the waves, the chatter above was muffled to a dull roar and the world around her transformed into a symphony of striking blues and softly greyed greens:

A thick layer of algae carpeted over the large rocks that littered the seafloor. A large trail carved through them where the _Sweet Revenge_ had pulled into the creek's mouth only to follow it and later turn around to where the ship now stayed. There weren't too many different types of fish around, but there plenty of mussels, clams, and sea urchins buried in the sand or tucked between stones. Other Fusion Fighters with their own diving gear and assisting nanos wove through the rocks in search of the missing candy.

A blur of red and gold shot past her in an eruption of bubbles as Four Arms jumped in after her and swam off. She looked up and could make out the pink of Mandy's outfit above the distortion of the water's surface. Diving even further down, her eyes scanned the seafloor along the trail. Whatever candy that had fallen out of the ship would more than likely have landed along the same path; however—whether because it had already been collected or carried away by the current—the way was clear.

_I just hope anything we find will be worth saving._ Chocolate dipped in saltwater didn't appeal to her anyway, although she doubted Stickybeard himself would care too much. Hopefully, most of the sweets were wrapped and sealed tight.

Within a few minutes, nano Mandy returned—diving beneath the waves and motioning for Silya to follow her. They ventured further away from the beach, swimming to one of the larger cliff-faces that sat at the edge of the cove before it spilled out to the open sea. A chest sat lodged between the rocks. _Bingo!_ Leaving Silya to do the heavy lifting, Mandy returned to the surface to regain her breath and continue the search. Silya pressed a foot against one of the rocks as a platform, grabbing one of the large, bronze handles along the sides of the chest with both hands, and _pulled_.

She couldn't lift it. She tugged it into an upright position and inched it away from the rocks, only for her to sink back down with its heavy weight. Eventually, another Fusion Fighter noticed her struggling and came to help—gripping the chest by the other side to balance the load. She gave the other an appreciative nod, and the two kicked away from the stones in unison to launch themselves back to the surface.

A tentacle shot out from the crevice beneath the chest to make a grab for it. A black eye glistened from the shadows and Silya's heart leapt in surprise as she watched the reddish-orange shape creep into view. The feeling was swiftly replaced, however, by humor at the sight of the tiny octopus that clung to the wood. Its attempt to yank the chest back was fruitless, the Fusion Fighters carrying the sea creature with them before the latter's nano Bubbles could gently urge the creature back to its home. They brought the chest over to one of the waiting rafts, where another pair of hands helped them lift it onboard.

"There better be candy leftover for us at the end of this," she heard someone fuss to her left. Nano Mandy hovered close by, clutching a nougat bar in her arms. She glared hard at it for a moment, then tossed it onto the raft with a pile of other loose sweets.

Silya briefly removed her rebreather to tease the Blaston, "Then no slacking off. We gotta make sure to get a little for everyone." If her nanos shared only one trait, it was an incurable love of sweets.

"No way! Only anyone who helps gets a share!"

She and the other pair of Fusion Fighters just laughed at the bratty declaration. After introductions were made, the group joined forces to try to collect as much as they could. As expected, not everything they found was salvageable, but that would be for Stickybeard and the other candy pirates to sort through. They stacked all of the candy into a large pile, sending the raft off mid-hunt to drop what they found off at the main camp, then dragging the raft back for another round.

Silya was scouring through the sand when she found something glistening under it. She had been at her task for so long that, at first, she thought it was a piece of taffy. Upon closer inspection, however, she saw that it was a pink, speckled shell. It reminded her of her Courage nano, and she stowed it in her pocket for later. Maybe she could collect a shell for each of her nanos as a small souvenir.

A kind of motherly worry hit her when she swam to surface once again to check on him only to find their spot on the beach empty. Safe as the place was, habit cast a wave of fear over her. Even though—as a nano—he could fly, she thought of him drowning. Even though the place was clear of fusion monsters, her thoughts went to the Candy Buccaneers not too far away.

Her heart raced, and she began to swim back to shore when at last she spotted a pink shape several meters away from their spot. Courage tottered back with an armful of candy he had apparently gathered along the coastline. A few seconds later, seeing her watching him, he waved at her only to clumsily drop part of his spoils.

She blinked, steadying her nerves, then smiled.

Later that evening, as the sun fell and the first stars began to appear in the sky, the candy pirates, Fusion Fighters, and their nanos gathered around a large bonfire. Stickybeard made a big show of it, taking the opportunity to tell everyone one of his adventures—casting wide gestures with a booming voice to emphasize the action in his story. Silya's three nanos all huddled around her, somewhat sleepy but all too intent on staying awake. Silya organized the shells she had gathered, sorting out which ones to give to the members of her team.

Nano Courage snuggled up against her leg, seeping in the fire's warmth. Their group had been given a few days off for Stickybeard's "mission" and had collected plenty of candy already, so—for the most part—they could enjoy the beach for the remainder of their trip. There was a nano station close-by, so she'd probably switch out everyone to give them all a chance to fully enjoy the summer waves and the time off from the war.

All in all, it was a pretty sweet vacation.


	2. The Pumpkin King

**2019 Halloween Event: The Pumpkin King**

_She'd lost count around 3,000 fusion monsters…_

This was supposed to be her favorite time of the year. She was supposed to be taking turns at any one of the Fusion Fighter bases taking watch and partying the rest of the night away. What happened instead? She and countless other independent agents were called in for reinforcements to the Eternal Vistas graveyard.

Silya didn't know what happened for there to be such an outbreak. The Fusion Fighters stationed nearby were always pretty vigilant and the underworlders–despite their aggravating, overall neutrality–didn't typically appreciate Fuse's creations ripping apart their territory. At first, she even dared to hope that it was a false alarm, when she'd been assigned her first job to collect a small sample of the new, weak pumpkin monstrosities by Jeff the Spider.

_Boy_, was she _wrong… _

While hardly a threat alone, the fusion monsters were difficult to beat in mass–and there was an insane army of them swarming every inch of the cemetery on top of the usual horrors that dominated the place like the Bloodsuckers. Worse, no matter how many of them the Fusion Fighters shot down, more would almost instantly respawn in their place. This was the fastest she'd ever seen any fusion rematerialize!

Beyond going through a bit of a blood rage, she didn't know how she lasted through the countless hours spent mowing them down. Now, not only was Halloween over, the woman was hungry, exhausted, and lacking her sweet-tooth fix! All she'd really gotten out of the night was some prototype, magical tokens Grim was working on to help revive soldiers in the field: Helpful, life-saving even, but she didn't care! Her favorite holiday had been ruined, and even for Fuse that crossed a line.

The interplanetary tyrant had to have at least one underworlder helping him out. Although the attack had been handled well-enough, it had been too planned. All while they fought, everyone's mind had gone to the countless bases and how much weaker they would be with such a massive shrink in forces. Either Fuse meant try to take out their large numbers forced to gather in one place or he meant to conduct a series of attacks across multiple locations. Either way, as soon as the job was finally done, everyone began to clear out–racing to return to their brothers and sisters in arms.

Except for Silya. Staying back and donning on a winged, skeletal appearance with her Spinal-ARCH and a dark cloak that would've gone with her costume for the evening, she'd marched over to a large crypt, forced her way inside, and stepped onto the wide, empty casket she knew would be placed in its center.

_Going down…_

The underworlders had all kinds of secret entrances to their domain like this, if you knew where to look for them. Him had dropped her the hint one time when he sent her on a stupid job to get some sort of makeup that could only be found there. Mortals weren't supposed to know about it, and she could be killed and her soul stolen if they found her trespassing. She was too angry to care. Running on their own clock, they were all probably still enjoying the Halloween festivities anyway and wouldn't pay much attention to her odd, not quite dead, look.

Having only been to the underworld once, she didn't know where to go, but she did have one clue about who to look for. Something similar to the attack had happened in Endsville one Halloween, only the pumpkins had supposedly been possessed by the souls of the dead rather than fusion matter. Grim refused to talk about it, but the story went that the immortal trickster, Jack O' Lantern, had been behind it. She was going to pay him a visit. And if turned out that he _was _working with Fuse, she was going to start a new tradition of pumpkin smashing every Halloween–starting with that head of his.

The area of the underworld she stepped into was something like a small town, albeit with a somewhat old-fashioned, fire and brimstone aesthetic. The streets were relatively clear, minus the occasional wagon full of screaming passengers barreling down them, but the lights of nearly every building were still on and loud, muffled sounds of music and jeering laughter could be heard from every corner. Just as she thought: Everyone was still busy enjoying the night.

Eventually finding a large, rowdy pub, she stepped inside, her hand going to the nano pieces hidden on her belt to manually lock them. The locks would only work for short periods, since she was the one doing it, but Silya didn't want her nanos to step into danger–not here. This was her gamble and she wasn't about to put them at risk. Weaving through the crowd, she sat at the bar and muttered an order. As a mortal, actually eating or drinking any of the food from the underworld could kill her, so she just wrapped her hand around the cup passed her way to keep appearances. Silya eyed the other patrons, wondering who she could attempt to pry Jack's whereabouts out of first.

Lucky or not, she actually didn't have to look for Jack at all. The lean jokester happened to already be there with his bag of tricks and noticed her walk in. Cloaked skeletons already had a way of catching his attention, but hundreds of years living with mortals–and once being a mortal himself–meant that her disguise didn't fool him as easily as it did the others. He snuck to her side, easing to the barstool next to her with his hat tipped low.

If it weren't for death taming him a bit and a heightened curiosity, he would've already slapped a 'Kick Me' sign on her back and watched the inevitable chaos ensue. As things were though, it was entertaining enough to see her visibly recoil when he leaned into her ear and whispered, "I'd hate to bother you, but we don't see many of _your_ type around here, miss. Not of the_ living_ variety anyway."

At first, Silya's expression had turned to shock, then immediately hardened as she reached for a weapon from under her cloak. She froze again, however, when she spun around to see a pumpkin face giving her a wicked grin. She wasn't prepared to have her cover blown so fast, but she reigned herself in, forcing aside her warfront instincts. Her lips pressed into a firm line, "I take it you're Jack?"

His grin turned pleased, satisfied that he still had something of a reputation in the world above. "Jack _O' Lantern_, the one and only." Helping himself to her glass, he drained part of its contents before he continued, "You shouldn't be here, girl. Those Resurrect 'Ems keeping you alive and well on the battlefield haven't exactly been good business for some of us. If someone catches you, you can kiss the surface goodbye."

He wasn't telling her anything she didn't already know. What it did tell her, however, was that he wouldn't likely reveal her to the other underworlders. Although she still kept her voice low, she relaxed a bit. "Oh yeah? We just had a massive attack right over your heads. If you people couldn't notice that much, I doubt anyone else is going to catch me."

Still sipping her drink, Jack turned his back to the bar, leaning against it as he raised his shoulders in an uncaring shrug. Tricks and mischief, battle and bloodshed, it was all par for the course for most underworlders: The chaos kept their immortal lives interesting. Granted, he could also understand her point of view: For all that had happened in his own time in the land of the living, he still nursed many of his old, human thoughts and feelings. He was just one of the few down here who would, and right now she was like a duck that had brought its own pot and leek to a banquet.

"Lighten up, lollipop: It's Halloween," he told her, "So what if you had to work? Go back up, go to a convenience store, and drown yourself in a bowl of clearance candy. It'd be a lot better than looking for another fight down here."

Pursing at the nickname, Silya leaned toward him. "Those fusion monsters looked like _pumpkins_, Jack," she rebuked, a fist tightened on the countertop. "A lot like _your _pumpkins, and I doubt I'm the only one who picked up on that, so maybe you should take this seriously."

He glowered at her as she finally got to her point. He didn't like the threat he thought tinged her voice, especially when he was trying to play nice for once. Not to mention, it hit a bit of a sore spot. The only reason he was this way to begin with was because he got axed over something he didn't do.

Inside, Jack didn't take her implications lightly. On the outside, he dismissed her with a wave of his hand, "I don't _do_ serious. There's no fun in it," then finished off the cup with a deep swig, "and there'd be no fun in doing the same, failed trick twice. Besides, why would I work with those green globs? You can't get a good laugh out of them. I prefer a solo act, sweetheart, and the end of the world isn't exactly what I'd call a punchline."

Silya blinked at her in surprise, her eyes widening. She hadn't thought about it that way, since it'd mean that Jack wouldn't have any new targets to practice his tricks on if the planet was destroyed. The underworlders were bound to be next after he'd conquered the surface, but as quick as most of them were to sell each other out, Jack still used to be human and just didn't have the that kind of stake in things. Pranks and jokes were his life, and that was pretty much it. When all the fun was over, there'd be nothing left.

Others would jump to her same conclusion. She wasn't quick to dismiss the possibility of Jack's betrayal either, but right then she didn't think he was lying. Looking away, she straightened in her seat and muttered a quiet, "Sorry…"

Jack raised a brow at her, but said nothing. Then, he reached into his bag and pulled out a lollipop, handing it to her. "Just take this and get out of here," he grumbled, "I'm in a good mood tonight, so I won't rat you out. If you're dumb enough to show your face around here again though, pick a better costume."

Suspicion shown in her eyes again until he reassured her it was mortal candy, pointing out the brand across the wrapper. Only then did Silya's face soften, a small word of thanks leaving her before she stood and exited the pub. Jack watched her go, still reclined against the bar. His own smile returned.

Yeah... that was going to stain her teeth for several hours.


	3. Nightmarish Pursuits

It wasn't normal. The summons had been sent out to nearly every research participant shared between Dexlabs and Mandark Industries—and the rivaling boy geniuses that ran each company may very well have called everyone to Tech Square if it wasn't for the war keeping so many of them busy. Summoning this many research participants at once meant only one of two things: A disaster or a breakthrough.

Silya's muscles tensed as her Spinal-ARCH reconnected. For not the first time she was glad that she had missed most of the device's initial testing phases, before a salve had been developed to numb the flesh as it attached itself to a person's back—adhesive plates of a strong, but flexible alien alloy pressing against skin and thin needles piercing through it to reach bone. It wasn't _quite_ as painful as it sounded, but she released a habitual, baited breath all the same. Then she stretched to make sure it had locked on properly, rolling her shoulders and shrugging on a plain tank.

Outside of routine inspections and repairs, she wasn't used to taking the device off. She probably should have more often than she did, but once it was on it was comfortable enough to forget about easily. Her Spinal-ARCH may as well have been a part of her own body. A sidelong glance at the other young women in the locker room—curled lips, terse shoulders, and faint shudders all reflecting a distinct unfamiliarity—hinted that the lax sense of protocol was mutually shared.

Every research participant's Spinal-ARCH had been updated: Increased data, improved storage, and a new program developed to better filter Imaginary Energy. It had been a long while since the last large update and Spinal-ARCHs were already widely distributed among Fusion Fighters as a part of their standard gear. After a day with them off as the alterations were made, everyone was curious about the two-week long tests that awaited them.

Which would begin immediately. Walls of blue-tinted steel surrounded the research participants from every angle as they followed one another out of the locker rooms and into a wide gymnasium. A fenced walkway two stories above wrapped around its perimeter. There, Dexter looked over the crowd with Computress at his side and a tablet in hand. A few minutes passed as the last stragglers entered, then the boy-genius waved them all to attention:

"Greetings, everyone! Thank you for coming on such short notice," he began, examining data as he spoke, "By now, you all should have received and reattached your Spinal-ARCHs. I will be brief: This latest update to the device should allow you take on full transformations of certain alien species."

After he typed some control onto the tablet, two tiny drones hovered close to the wall to project a sequence of holographic models that were recognizable to almost everyone present, nicknames given by a certain hero reciting in their minds: Big Chill, Way Bad, Ghostfreak, Ampfibian—alien forms all somewhat altered to better fit a humanoid frame. An excited murmur fell over the crowd.

Dexter noticeably stood a little straighter as he continued, "You will note that these are not perfect transformations. As these forms will encase around your physical bodies, they will mimic your physical limits. However, I am pleased to announce that—in each form—you may experience different enhancements through the manipulation of imaginary energy. Testing these enhancements will be the primary objective for this week's experiments. Today, you are free to explore each of the transformations for yourselves as my scientists and I monitor your progress."

The quiet chatter between the research participants increased. Silya looked away from the holograms still flashing through the different alien forms to her own hands. Nearly every Fusion Fighter wanted to explore the limits of their imaginary energy: She was no different. There were a few, rare full transformations in the Spinal-ARCHS datalogs, but for the most part transformations were restricted to minor extensions from their bodies—tentacles that lacked complete coordination or wings that couldn't actually support them because they simply weren't strong enough. If Dexter and Mandark had really found a way to expand on their current abilities…

All of a sudden, Computress tapped Dexter on the shoulder, giving him a slight, reprimanding look. The redhead blinked at the android before his proud expression somewhat hardened. He raised a hand to silence the crowd once more. "I feel I should mention," he frowned, "that this update is—in part—thanks to the cooperation of the Galvan scientist Albedo, whose specialization in alien technology benefited our research for these new transformations. Given his history with Ben Tennyson, however, I understand should anyone have their reservations. You may leave the experiments at any time with your Spinal-ARCH redacted to its previous update, but if you do so now please exit outside before we begin momentarily."

Saying that some of them had 'reservations' was putting it lightly. The very mention of the false Ben's name sent many into a bewildered, bitter chatter of suspicion. Even most those who weren't major fans of the teenage hero had heard of the Galvan: He was slated along with all the other large reports of villains who had sided with the Fusion Fighters for one reason or another. Some even had the displeasure of meeting him in-person. Why Dexter or Mandark would team up with him was beyond them.

However, for all of their wariness against Albedo, they did trust Dexter. There was no telling what was happening over at Mandark Industries—where Mandark's own group of lab rats was likely receiving the same kind of speech—but only a handful of people squirmed through the crowd to exit the gym from the right. As the doors opened, they could see a small group of Dexbots waiting for them. Luckily for Dexter, their numbers were shockingly about the same.

Silya was surprised that she herself stayed rooted were she stood, her fists gripped tightly to her sides. The more reserved, rational side of her mind cursed her, but she wanted this. She became a research participant at Dexlabs for two reasons: The pay was great and the potential to explore groundbreaking territory all too tempting. It came with big risks, but just as big rewards. For her own ambitions, she hopes one of those rewards would include gaining better mastery over her own imaginary energy.

Whatever their reasons—loyalty, curiosity, insanity—the bulk of the research participants stayed behind. Most all of them weren't new to questionable or unorthodox tests: Their bosses had already weeded out anyone who would shrink back at their mad science several times over. Some of them had handled prototype explosives, dipped in vats of fusion matter, and travelled through time. They weren't the sort anyone could chase away easily.

Dexter knew that all too well, and once again grinned at those who remained. He pressed a few more controls on his tablet and the gymnasium slowly began to alter while the group watched on, unphased. On the left side of the gym, platforms and poles rose from the floor in a kind of miniature obstacle course; targets popped out from behind hidden panels along the wall; the sliding door to the storage closet unlocked, giving them access to everything contained within.

"Take each of the transformations slowly," he instructed, "and take note of any physical changes that may occur. Each of you will need to submit a full report of your experiences before you leave the lab. You may use any of the equipment, but should you experience any pain or discomfort at any point, speak to one of the Dexbots present immediately."

With that, the research participants split up. Silya glanced at the still-looping hologram footage. The Big Chill form was the closest to her usual transformations: All types of wings—while difficult for those without experience to summon—were popular among most Fusion Fighters. To this day no one could actually fly with them, but they could give a bit of a lift and added protection when one had to jump from extreme heights.

A faint tingle dully thrummed along the slope of her back as the Spinal-ARCH activated, already hijacking messages from her brain to her spine and throughout her nerve fibers. She envisioned a set of wings fluttering gently behind her; softer than what she was used to, lighter, moth-like. Sure enough, they emerged from a split-second spectacle of light as her imaginary energy concentrated into a solid form—fitted on top of her clothes and the device, but mentally cabled to her nervous system like any other part of her body. If it weren't for the way they fit over the fabric, it'd be impossible to tell that they _weren't_ a true part of her.

She was surprised by how _dense_ the wings felt though, especially compared to what she was used to. The lack of true substance was what made their instability so frustratingly obvious her. For the moment, Silya tried to brush it from her mind: She wanted to complete the transformation before anything.

It took a few minutes. She watched in fascination as her imaginary energy continued to materialize, black and blue plates shifting over her like a thin, flexible suit of armor. They ran over her arms, her legs, her torso until they lastly began to fit along the more subtle angles of her face. She held her breath—this part _was _new, and she had to clasp onto the vision of a helmet to keep her concentration from breaking. A strange filter that barely stained everything a faint green settled over her eyes as the 'mask' finished constructing itself.

To ensure a complete, stable transformation it was often better for Fusion Fighters to watch them take shape whenever they experimented with something new. Fortunately, the gym had a series of wide mirrors along part of one wall, where a crowd had already gathered. Not everyone went ahead with the full transformations, but nearly everyone who had was over there. Silya jogged the short distance to them, brushing shoulders to reach an empty frame, and stared at her own reflection. The sight of the apparition before her was jarring, but besides a few mistakes—which quickly patched over themselves to match each of her mental corrections—it seemed perfect. There she was, a strange, human copy of the Necrofriggian race; shorter, with a more feminine waist and eyes dipped closer to their true peridot color instead of the bold lime or malachite the species was better known for.

Her heart leapt. There were a few other 'whole' transformations within the datalogs, but most of them seemed off in some way or another to her so she rarely used them. _This _was the sort of big step she wanted to take…

Again though, she noticed something strange. In her excitement, her wings gave an instinctual flap. Silya felt her body actually _rock in place_ at the motion, not expecting the subtle force behind it. Reaching back across her shoulder, her fingertips gently traced the edge of one wing. She actually felt as though there were nerves under it, twitching at the new sensation. It did feel more real than any of her past attempts, but she couldn't pinpoint exactly _how _that was the case.

Startled shouts rose over the casual ambience of the gym. Although at different phases, around a third of the research participants who had activated their Spinal-ARCHs also started out with the Big Chill transformation. One of the other girls who had only summoned her wings thus far tested them out with a few, powerful flaps—and was apparently just as unprepared for the force behind them. It threw her body forward and the people around her moved away to avoid a near collision. She stumbled, but caught herself.

Or rather, her _wings_ did. Clumsily, yes, but they clearly pulled her back, _dragging_ her a few centimeters with her toes lightly grazing the floor. Those nearby looked at her in astonishment, the girl hardly able to make sense of what happened herself.

It took seconds for the others to begin to test out the strengths of their wings. Silya gently moved her own and smiled along to the excited chatter that picked up once again as each person made little discoveries to their new transformations. The awkward, uncoordinated handling could easily be blamed on a lack of practice, but they _did_ feel like they truly were a part of her—the product of a second skin. She looked up to where Dexter still stood watching them over the walkway railing to find the boy-genius practically grinning from ear to ear with pride. _ Enhancements…_ she shook her head, _That's the understatement of the year._

It was times like these when she loved her employer's mad science.

Silya didn't even bother touching the equipment for now. She just found a relatively empty, little corner of the gym to continue practicing her dexterity with her new 'body.' She only wished she could practice longer with it, but she didn't want to risk straining the device or herself yet and she'd need to make time to test out the other forms before the day's experiments ended. _Guess the third scientist's the charm—even if Albedo's a crook. _

All-in-all, things were looking up.

END of Part ONE

* * *

_She dreamed she was running through Nowhere's vast Catacombs._

_Silya had only explored them for a handful of jobs, but she hated them. Although it was littered with ancient structures that were the envy of any adventurer, it was easy to get lost in its series of winding tunnels. Even the nanocom's maps didn't always function properly in their depths. _

_One really had to navigate them by memory, but, right then, she just _couldn't_. It would be hard enough in real life, but in the dream each direction she turned to seemed distorted and warped. Any path she followed would shift before her eyes and she'd be forced to loop back to where she began. Eyes stared at her from the crevices of the rocks, following her every move. _

_Worse still, the whole of the Catacombs was incredibly unstable, almost like an earthquake was splitting them apart. Debris rained down from above, threatening to bury her alive! Before it could though, a rift began to tear through the tunnels with a single eye charging down it as though it were following a track straight for her. Her legs felt like lead. She couldn't move!_

_The ground beneath her fell away and she looked up just in time to see the rock—carved apart like a beast's mangled fangs—close above to swallow her in darkness._

...

The young woman was jarred awake by the blaring alarm from the barrack's loudspeakers. After the initial shock had passed, she inwardly winced as she rose from under the thin sheets of her bed. Her bunkmate was missing—she had probably already headed out for the day—but the other girl they were rooming with dragged herself out from beneath her own covers and shuffled off to the communal washrooms with a quiet 'good morning' mumbled under her breath. Silya remained seated, rubbing her face as she tried to ward off a dull headache.

She didn't usually get nightmares—not in the same respect that others saw them anyway—but they weren't uncommon among Fusion Fighters. It came with the job. Between fighting monsters, surviving fusion matter exposure, travelling into all sorts of dangerous terrain, and facing death on a regular basis, a few bad dreams were inevitable.

After filing her first report the night before, she hadn't gotten much sleep either. She needed something to help wake her up, _I know I've got one of Grim's sugar scrubs…_ The reaper's spa business had flourished in recent years. Its products worked their way down to the soul, easily renewing the people who used them. There was probably some kind of underworld magic involved, but they were so effective that most didn't even question it.

Silya always had at least one carry-on tube on her for emergencies like this. She dug it out of her pack and walked over to the small half-bath set in the corner of the room right of the exit. The steady, cool water pouring from the sink felt good to her tired eyes.

She heard a faint click behind her not long after the alarm went off and saw a blue glow followed by an onyx blur spiral away from her bunk in the reflection of the mirror: Aoi, her Demongo nano, had zipped out of his nanochip and floated behind her. His shrill voice dripped with amusement, "You look bad!"

Silya pursed her lips, still scrubbing her face, "Thanks a lot…"

"You turned a lot," he continued, "in your sleep. Did _someone_ have a bad dream?"

"I'm doing just fine," she raised her voice pointedly. Undoubtedly, if her other nanos were awake, then they were listening too. It was pretty much impossible to keep anything a secret between her team. Silya glanced over her shoulder to return Aoi's smug expression with an incredulous look, "What were _you_ doing up that late anyway? I'm pretty sure I had all of you turn in early."

The previous day had been a long one for all of them. While she and the other research participants were experimenting with their Spinal-ARCHs, all of their nanos were called in for a check-up. They were fairly routine and nanos could be called in for them easily with the use of a Nano Station, but if their IE Donors spent any great length of time on the warfront it was also easy for some to fall overdue. With so many of them at Tech Square all at once, the check-ups were even running over into that day's schedule.

She wasn't about to let certain, little demons miss theirs, even if she was starting to regret bringing them all at once.

"We did!" protested a fluctuating, courser—if somewhat feminine—voice as a flash of red appeared next. It was her Him nano, Roulette. He peered over her bunk with a lax disposition. "It doesn't sound like all of us got our beauty sleep though—and don't look at me!" he waved a clawed hand, "_I_ can't create nightmares!"

Turning off the faucet, Silya began to hunt for her sweat suit. For all she knew, the experiments would be more of the same for that day; however, before they began, she didn't plan on walking around the barracks in nothing but a spaghetti-strap tank and athletic shorts. "I'm fine," she repeated, "You three just keep yourselves in check. If you give anyone any trouble, you're dragging yourselves out of that mess!"

"Perish the thought!"

She fought back a smile. Not all of her nanos were completely trustworthy—much like their original counterparts—but she had to give them _some_ credit. As much grief as they could give _her_, they actually were pretty good overall. They'd give her sass, but they'd also follow orders well enough and left most other people in peace. So long as they weren't 'provoked' anyway…

Out of habit, Silya looked at the remaining sealed nanochip, but then remembered that their third demonic tag-along—Naku—was probably in the middle of his check-up right then. Being born from a shred of pure darkness, the nano scientists were taking particular care with him. The last thing the Fusion Fighters needed was a bunch of tiny Aku clones running around, so they were always examined with the most caution.

Aoi followed her as she continued getting ready for the day, "You're going to be gone all day again?"

"Maybe," she shrugged, reaching over to ruffle the blue flames of his head. He'd been on her team for a while, but it still surprised her that they had such a gentle warmth. As much as he would protest, he just wasn't like the original Demongo. "I'll leave your nanochips in the room, but you know the rules: Don't leave the property, don't bother the scientists _or_ the robots, and—if you need me—always check with the people at Dexlabs first." Surely, they'd obey that much, if only to follow the two companies' strict schedules: Almost everything in Tech Square worked on a clock, so falling out of it tended to mean falling behind, be it with meetings or meals.

A note she was reminded of when the barracks' alarm went off a second time. This early, there were three: One to wake up everyone, one to hurry them on, and one to get them out of the door. If they didn't move, they'd spend the morning with empty stomachs.

"Maybe you should pass on the morning routine," Roulette hovered over to her next, "Sleep in for a while. If you're not up for the tests, I doubt either of the four-eyed wonder-boys could blame you."

Despite his curt words, the hint of _actual concern_ laced in them gave her a moment's pause. Insults and banter, she was used to, but it made it more worrisome whenever they were serious. Still, Silya reassured them as she stepped outside of the room with a confident grin, "If a bad night's sleep were enough to bring me down, I think we'd all have something to worry about. Let's just get going."

She would endure nightmares _every_ night before she dropped out of the experiment. Although she ran out of time before she could use the Ampfibian form for long, testing each of the others had been like something from a dream. The Big Chill form's wings were stronger and more capable of holding out to _actually use for flight._ The Way Bad form was incredibly durable, as tough as any armor. The Ghostfreak form's tentacles were far easier to control than its predecessors', deft and nimble as any other part of the body. Silya would stay for as long as Dexter needed her if it meant she could keep playing around with the Spinal-ARCH's update.

That day's schedule was risky as ever, but was also actually pretty boring. Both Dexlab's and Mandark Industries' scientists needed to review all of the research participants initial reports before pushing certain tests further, so they'd just be testing how well the imaginary energy each form was crafted from handled against fusion matter exposure. She'd practically just be sitting around for most of the day, so she could nod off in-between sessions.

The hall outside was bustling with research participants hurrying around. Even for the middle of the morning, there was more traffic than usual. Everyone seemed on-edge with excitement to continue the experiments from where they left off. Silya marched after them, not about to be left behind.

END of Part TWO

* * *

The first week of tests had gone by swiftly. Each day, the research participants would wake up to report at Dexlabs or Mandark Industries, stop for lunch, and devote their afternoons either to more testing or filing a personal report to their overseers. Much of their free time was split between fitness training and watch duty around the borders of Tech Square, but it was still nothing compared to the duties most of them shared on the warfront. Not even the handful of fusion monsters that managed to get past their first lines of defense were able to break the relative calm.

And now everyone officially had their Spinal-ARCHs back. Staring in the mirror, Silya smiled. Due to the extremes of the update, they'd been required to had over the devices at the end of each set of experiments as a cautionary measure and to make small adjustments when needed. Now that they seemed to be working at full capacity, all of the participants were free to use them in their own time with the condition that they would submit additional reports in turn.

It was a tight squeeze in the half-bath, but Silya had the Big Chill wings extended as far as they could go—with the door slid all the way open to help make room. She hadn't taken her Spinal-ARCH off for the day yet. She didn't plan to. She'd use it as much as she was allowed. Hands on the sloping path of the wings' outer edges, the young woman continued to admire them—every twitch, every nerve. It really was like a dream…

She wasn't the only one taking advantage of things. Most of the research participants had signed on for independent use of their Spinal-ARCHs, and the few that hadn't probably only didn't just because they were feeling ill. Whatever it was—overexcitement, overworking, or just plain bad dreams—a lot of them were having difficulty getting any proper sleep. Well, they would get a day off soon enough. She could rest up all she wanted then.

It was already well past lights out, but a Fusion Fighter's schedule didn't necessarily align with anyone in Tech Squares. Both of the girls sharing her room were up: One reclining on an upper bunk with a pair of headphones over her ears and the other finishing up her report for the day. Eventually though, the latter rose with a yawn, stretched her arms, and walked toward the door. "I'm getting a drink. You guys want anything?"

Silya shook her head, following the other's gaze to their third roommate. She had to repeat the question when the latter finally took notice, but only received a casual thumb's up in answer before leaving. Silya watched them both carefully, then looked back in the mirror again. Each of their eyes were dark from lack of sleep. Yes, a day off was just the thing all of them needed: Nothing to do but patrol the borders of Tech Square for a couple hours, final a single report, and then relax. She had taken a late watch, so she could even sleep in.

Dexter probably wouldn't allow it yet, but she couldn't wait to use her Spinal-ARCH in the field. Complete flight still seemed like an impossibility as things were now, but the wings _were_ stronger. She could hover. She could command them just as well as any other body part. If they were already an advantage before, simply by being made from Imaginary Energy, who knew what it meant now. She huffed… It was so tempting; she'd almost give up the day off just for that early chance.

She had deactivated the device and was just about to get ready for bed when, suddenly, the lights went out. A dull thrum echoed through the walls as both the electricity and air conditioning units shut down. The building didn't have emergency lights, so only the faint glow of her roommate's phone shown against the metal walls. Both girls looked up with surprise.

_A power outage?_ Both tech companies had their own back-up generators. She thought for sure that the barracks were connected to at least one of them. Out of habit, Silya walked over to her bunk and grabbed her belt, all three nanochips securely locked onto it. She grimaced, forcing herself to calm down. Her nanos were probably asleep: She wouldn't wake them up over a small thing like this. It didn't stop her from clipping the belt around her hips though.

The water would still work. Walking back to the half-bath, Silya began to brush her teeth. She combed and braided her hair for the night. She moved back to her bunk and sat down. She waited.

The lights didn't come back on. More importantly, an off feeling that she just couldn't ignore had begun to gnaw at her gut. Tech Square ran like clockwork and, with so many people there, there was no way an outage like this would go unnoticed for long. In minutes, you could count on someone to check what was wrong and if the problem wasn't solved by then, then you could expect an android to roll to your door and alert you about the situation.

A few more minutes passed. Their roommate didn't come back. Except for the muffled music coming from the other girl's headphones, everything was quiet. And Silya soon had enough.

"I'm going to see what's going on," she said, pushing herself off the bed and over to the door. She might as well have been talking to herself, but she still continued, "Some idiot probably messed with the power box."

That's what she told herself anyway. There were some clowns among the research participants: Something like this was just the sort of thing that happened when you mixed them with a bunch of scientists who were too smart for their own good, who could overthink to the point of losing common sense. It'd be just like them…

Just like their quarters, the hall outside was dark and empty. There was a window at the far end, but nightfall kept the atmosphere bleak nonetheless. _Looks like all of Tech Square's gone dark,_ she noted, as what little light seeped through the window wasn't even bright enough to illuminate the stairs next to it. She'd have to find her way around by feel. A hand pressed against the wall, she began her careful exploration.

Everything was quiet. Most of the others should've been asleep, but still… She expected more. No one stayed on the warfront for long without developing a cautionary nature. For some, the comforts of everyday life became an illusion, because after a while your mind never really left the battlefield. She didn't _personally _think she was that far, but Silya knew a handful of others that were. So, where were they?

Whether she liked it or not, she got her answer. Turning the corner to the first half of the first flight of stairs, her foot nudged against a solid mass in the dark. She squinted down at the form, her muscles stiffening in shock immediately after. It was a young man with dark hair, sprawled along the stairs. Without missing a beat, she reached down and checked him over. There were no visible signs that he had fallen, but she didn't know that: He might've hit his head and sustained a brain injury.

She shook his unconscious form, "Hey! Hey, you need to get up!" If he did have brain damage, she would need to get him medical attention immediately –there was no telling how long he'd been lying there! For a while though, he didn't stir.

It was when he _did_ finally open his eyes though that was most concerning. They were solid black with darkened streaks bulging out of them, the irises a disturbing shade of fuchsia. His mouth pulled back into a leering grin, a twisted chuckle reverberating from his throat, and he grabbed her wrist in a painful hold before she could pull away.

Stunned, Silya was barely able to keep herself from being thrust down the stairs—grabbing the nearby railing with her free hand, she wrestled against him. She reactivated her Spinal-ARCH, summoning her wings again and beating them harshly to draw herself further back all while pressing a foot against his chest to launch him away from her. The boy fell the rest of the way down, hitting his back against the wall.

What was happening? Is this why there was no one else around? Was this happening to everyone?! She stared down at him as he just picked himself back up with another distorted laugh, as if the fall had meant nothing. And the terrifying familiarity of those eyes mocked her. They reminded her of a—!

"Ghostfreak…" she whispered, a cold dread following that realization.

"_Well, it seems somebody remembered their homework…"_ a jeering, masculine voice said. Not from the boy. Not from herself—but it was coming from her head! She backed away. Without her control, the wings on her back evaporated only to morph into the Ghostfreak tendrils she had been practicing with all week. _"Not _that '_Ghostfreak,' mind you," _the voice seemed to spit out the nickname, _"but you've got the right idea."_

Ectonurite DNA… there was _Ectonurite DNA_ in the Spinal-ARCHs! Albedo must have done it… It didn't matter how much he injected within the devices, just a shred of it was all it took and now they were probably worming their way into every research participants' subconscious! Worse than that though, one more thought entered her mind, a piece of knowledge Vilgax had muttered the l

* * *

ast time she had been stationed at Offworld Plaza:

The Ectonurites were allied with Fuse.

As if on cue, a startled, strangled cry echoed in a haunting muffle through the halls. It _was_ happening to everyone… She had to get the Spinal-ARCH off! It was dangerous to remove the device prior to deactivating it, but she didn't care! If it addled her brain or left her paralyzed, she wouldn't allow herself to be used like this!

But it was already too late. Silya's hands trembled as she and Ectonurite contained within the device fought for control over her body until her arms eventually went limp at her sides. She opened her mouth to call for help—there had to be at least _one person_ within earshot who wasn't going through this—but the cry was immediately stifled as her mouth sealed shut for her.

"_Shhh… We don't want to wake anyone, do we?"_ Twitching, her fingers gingerly traced the edge of her belt, noticeably gliding across her nanochips. The threat was clear. They wouldn't attack her, she knew that, but he wouldn't hold back: She'd have to play along—for the moment—or her nanos would suffer. _"Normally, I'd take full control of your wretched body, but we must have you looking presentable, don't we, puppet? Can't tip anyone off!"_ As if to clarify, her eyes began to sting. She grimaced.

The young man in front of them wobbled, closing his eyes with a pained groan as the Ectonurite controlling him released some of its own influence. When he opened them again, the disturbing black and pink had been replaced by an earthy brown. He stared up at her in confusion, then fear—opening his mouth to speak, but just as quickly silenced. His body was ridged, twitching as he fought to regain power over himself before he too went limp.

The tendrils on her back coiled in the air for a second, as if stretching, then vanished as her imaginary energy was reabsorbed. She found herself walking down the stairs to face the other research participant, the two sharing a horrified look before her mouth forcibly pulled back into a cruel grin and her _own_ voice spoke the Ectonurite's words:

"Get with your unit. Finish this job and you can you do whatever you'd like with your puppet later."

END of Part THREE

* * *

The cold pricked Silya's bare arms as she stepped out of the research participants' quarters, followed by the fellow victim. Much to her ever-growing horror, they weren't alone: A group of Fusion Fighters were gathered together outside—among them, her missing roommate. She couldn't tell whether there was more than one Ectonurite involved or if just one or a handful had split their DNA across the whole of group, but she could still tell each human present was possessed because of the cold, cruel smile shared between them.

As they waited for more of their numbers to gather, some exiting the barracks and a few others coming from the outskirts of Tech Square—most likely the ones involved with the cut power—they remained clustered in the shadows. She could see flashlights in the distance, hopefully from the still-free soldiers looking to restore order. No one could call out to them though. People twitched and spasmed, fighting for control over the ghosts only to soon lose it again.

Held prisoner in her own subconscious, Silya raced through anything she knew about the alien species. Unfortunately, outside of a small collective of stories and basic facts, her knowledge was limited. She wasn't a Plumber, so that information had been glossed over during training. In order to keep up an act of normalcy, however, it didn't seem like the Ectonurites were exuding full control over anyone. She could still think clearly and read her surroundings, so that in itself was a good sign. From what she could tell, he would have to shut her mind down completely anyway for total control, so that could rule out the possibility of him reading her thoughts.

It meant she could try to come up with some kind of plan. What were an Ectonurites weaknesses again? Direct light? Well, they'd already taken care of the electricity and they were pretty much invincible anyway so long as they remained in their hosts. If there was any chance at beating the ghosts, they would need to be cast out of their bodies first. Just _how_ though?

The whole of their forces soon gathered. There was only around two or three dozen people around her, but almost every research participant who'd stayed for the experiments had tested the Ghostfreak transformation. That meant any remainders were either out on-duty, guarding Tech-Square's borders, or were off on some other errand for their puppetmasters. A new worry bubbled up inside her: She imagined the controlled soldiers taking out their companions and letting a hoard of fusion monsters through the blockades.

They split off into two smaller groups: One headed to Mandark Industries and the other—hers—to Dexlabs. All at once, the humans around her started talking; light-hearted chatter Silya _knew_ was fake because a lot of it was the same kind of dialogue she had heard and said herself over the course of the week. Only, just as before, it wasn't them: The Ectonurites were just feeding them used lines.

It fooled the four watchmen at the front doors though. They only stopped the large group with a curious brow, asking to see one of their ID cards. Looking it over with a tactical flashlight, the guard grunted, "Looks like the power's out all over. Dex and the other nerds are already on the case though, if that's what you're here for."

A girl's eye twitched, the Ectonurite controlling her forcing out a sigh of relief, "It is. We were worried if it was some kind of emergency. The lights just shot on their own while we were all hanging out in our rooms. Anything we can do to help?"

"Not unless any of you are technicians."

"Ah… Well, in any case, can you send someone over there? The emergency lock went off in one of the buildings. No one can get in or out."

Here, the watchmen shared a glance, and for a second Silya thought they might pick up that something was wrong. Although the front doors of each of the barracks were electric, everyone who stationed at Tech Square regularly knew how to access the manual controls—not to mention most of them weren't averse to just making their own exits if they had to. She thought she could signal them, fighting to regain control of her arm only for her other hand to swiftly grab it and pull it behind her back in a false, nervous stretch.

They didn't notice anything. After a minute's debate, two of the guards jogged away to the barracks, leaving the group standing with the final pair. The girl turned to them once again, "We were also thinking we could take advantage of the darkness. We've all got our Spinal-ARCHs and there's not much else to do, so we thought some extra training might be good."

The same guard as before shook his head. "Sorry, can't even let you in to grab your gear. Orders from up-top: Dex doesn't want anyone wandering through the building without his authorization until the power's back."

"I think you'll find that we answer to a higher authority."

The young woman saw it coming, but her mouth was bound shut. From around the edge of the facility, two large figures—sure enough, another two possessed research participants—darted from the shadows and struck the guards from behind. Before either could cry out in shock, they were gagged and beaten: One struck in the neck and the other thrown against the wall until he was rendered senseless. Both collapsed, unconscious, and were dragged away in the same minute after one of their attackers tossed another Ectonurite a pair of keys. Said alien quickly began to fiddle with a manual control hatch alongside the doors, the others keeping watch.

Eventually, someone managed to fight for control enough to collapse to the ground with a pained grunt, hands knotting through their hair as they stammered out a question bitterly, "W-what'sss… even about?! Sabotage? You c-can't! Labs' locked down."

They had a point. Getting into the building itself was one thing, but any of the actual labs would be shut down by double or triple encoded locks that only Dexter or his team of scientists would know how to access. The research participants were only allowed so far in, and if they were caught anywhere else—whether or not anyone inside knew the full situation—they would be taken into custody. The same standard applied over at Mandark's—if they weren't even more severe. The Ectonurites' puppeteering was pretty much useless from this point forward.

One of ghosts gave a jeering laugh from a young man's body, "We're not as contained as you would wish. We only need you to get inside and use as cover." As if to illustrate, he partially summoned one of the Ghostfreak tendrils, waved it, then quickly dispersed it. "Your employers may experiment on you all they like, but I doubt they would purposefully harm their prized lab rats."

"That's right," nodded the one at the door, which made a faint click as it unlocked. The Ectonurite pulled it open, motioning the others in with a mocking gesture. "And if you're lucky, maybe a few of them will trade themselves over for your sakes. It wouldn't be as fun, but I'm sure Lord Fuse would reward us well if we brought him a few of Earth's finest minds as souvenirs."

The very idea of being used as a hostage made Silya want to curse. For a second, she was able to push her will enough to curl her hands into fists at her side, even as she marched past the door with the others. Beyond the faint light shining behind them, they were soon swallowed by darkness; however, the ghosts possessing them didn't seem to mind—even when they still had to use their human eyes to get by. Unlike during the day, the halls were bleak and empty, the metal walls somehow less pristine and more cold than usual.

It also seemed that the Ectonurites had memorized the way through the building, at least in the areas that the research participants regulated, hinting that they may have been secretly monitoring everything from the humans' subconscious ever since their DNA had been accessed through the Spinal-ARCHs. They passed the main lobby, the waiting areas, and the gyms, heading deeper through the winding halls to the silent areas few of them had ever explored without escort.

Soon enough, the group began to split off on their own investigations. Two of them stopped in front of one door that Silya had never gone through. She was forced to watch, disgusted, as one of the Ectonurites ripped out a girl's body, her struggled cry muffed by a clawed hand before one of the other research participants—still possessed—gripped her from behind. Not that she could wrestle away easily, given the way she leaned forward in exhaustion when the ghost finally broke free. Fading it, slipped through the door, its host still bound and waiting for its return.

_A light, a light… _Silya panicked_. _If she could just find something, _anything_ to use against the spirit possessing her, she could try to attack him as soon as he snapped out of her body. For a second, her mind angrily went to Dexter and his denial of all magical elements in favor of 'real' science. Maybe if he wasn't so quick to dismiss them, he'd have something useful on hand that didn't have to be plugged into an outlet! Maybe—!

She froze. Magic… She had a magical being strapped right at her hip, _Aoi!_ He was a Demongo nano: His demon fire could burn anything right down to the soul!

The idea came upon her so suddenly and terror reared its ugly head so much that the Ectonurite controlling her wasn't prepared when she shot her hand out a second time with a _loud_, vicious scream. He muffled her fast, her side thrown against the wall hard enough for her to see stars, but she had already ripped Aoi's nanochip off of her built. It went flying from her grasp, scuttling across the floor, and with a burst of blue light her familiar companion appeared in front of her eyes—confusion in his own gaze when he looked around to see just where they were and why she had jarred him awake. Seeing her dazed on the floor, he tried to approach, but soon halted when Ghostfreak tendrils shot out from her back.

Bracing herself against the ground, shaking as she fought to rear the ghost inside her in, she fumbled for words. They came out as a broken, sibilant whisper before she could manage to get out a soft, "Fire…" Again, she cried out, louder even as it felt like the Ectonurite was seeking his claws into her throat and the tendrils twisted menacingly around her, "M-me…. Use you're f-fire on me!"

It wasn't an expression she was used to seeing, but a child's fear lit in his stare at her order, "Silya—?!"

"_Now, Aoi!_" she gagged. She was losing it! Her vision was already beginning to cloud over and she could feel the Ectonurite regaining power over her limbs, limply pulling her off the floor. He was taking full control!

But not long after darkness shrouded her completely, everything seemed to erupt in a cerulean light. Flames danced before her mind's eye, tracing every inch of her body. It hurt _a lot_—like nothing she'd ever experienced, even compared to the intense burns she'd get from overexposure to fusion matter. However, when she heard a scream, it wasn't her own. For everything she felt, the Ectonurite was bound to feel it tenfold.

She collapsed again. She couldn't see. She couldn't move. All she felt was the cold floor under her and all she heard was a loud ringing in her ears. For a moment, she wondered if she died _for real_, Aoi's powers somehow distorting whatever hold Grim's magic had over her to connect her lifeforce to his Resurrect 'Ems.

Slowly though, the world began to piece itself back into existence. She was in the same hall. It was still dark. And there was Aoi, hovering over her with a terrified expression on his face and his hands still held out in front of him from his attack. She wanted to smile at him—the blasted demon-child that spent most of his time trying to get on her nerves. She couldn't though: She was too weak and beyond him she could see blurred figures racing onto the scene. She had to warn him.

"Ghostfreaks, they've—" Silya huffled, struggling even with that small effort. Not only was she still in pain, she couldn't believe how tired she felt. "No time... Free the others, Aoi. Burn those freaks to a crisp!"

It was hard to breath and things started to get dark and hazy again. The little Demongo clone opened his mouth to demand answers, but was interrupted by the sound of feet hurrying toward them. He jerked his head around as two more lights—red and yellow—spiraled off of her belt in near unison to join him at his side.

And then Silya's mind slipped away.

END of Part FOUR

* * *

The next time Silya opened her eyes she was facing a wide, empty sky. At first, most of the sounds that reached her ears weren't very distinct—they all seemed to muffle together in an incoherent racket—but she could make out the striking, white lights of the streetlamps lined on both sides of her. She still could've move much and her head was throbbing. Nevertheless, she just counted herself lucky to still be in one piece.

She was just one in a long line of rows of people; most lying on their backs on mats, all gathered in the heart of Tech Square. Having blacked out, she didn't know what happened, but enough people had been injured that they'd already filled one of the large awnings used for outdoor meetings and were setting people down in the grass. Scientists, medics—even Plumbers, based on their uniforms—were checking up on the wounded or talking amongst themselves, armed to the teeth. Nanos of all types stayed close to their IE Donors, waiting for them to wake up.

Silya didn't see her Him or Aku nanos anywhere, but one glance to her side pacified her worst thoughts. There was her belt, with two of the three nanochips attached to it blinked on to indicate that they were safely inside. As for her third nano, she found Aoi lying sprawled overtop a medkit within arm's reach, half-asleep. He looked like he'd been through the fire himself, beaten and scuffed. She could've scolded him: He knew that his best chance of recovery was to go inside his nanochip for a good, long rest. Still…

She had to bite her own reluctance, her skin flaring in alarm as she rolled to her side and weakly reached out for him. She knew it was safe, but her body still remembered the flames. Nevertheless, she patted his head, watching as the blue wisps trickled through her fingers like smoke. Aoi mumbled in his sleep, curling around himself. She gave him a tired grin. _You did alright, you little demon…_ she wanted to tease him.

Better than alright. Despite how awful she felt, from what Silya could tell he had centered his flames around her soul enough to spare her physical self from serious harm. She wasn't so sure that even the _real _Demongo would show that level of control—not for any lack of skill, but a lack of care. Aoi _admired_ that creep and had adopted a lot of his mannerisms the instant he'd been created. She'd seen the panic in his eyes… It must've taken a lot of restraint to withhold his fire like he did. For not the first time, she was glad he wasn't actually as much like his original model as he wanted to be.

One of the medics soon noticed she was awake, helped her sit up, and gave her some kind of tea. She didn't ask what it was or where it came from: It tasted awful and she got the feeling it had some otherworldly origins. All Silya wanted was a briefing on the situation:

Fusion Fighters had fought against each other all across Tech Square: The free against the possessed. Early on, someone with ties to the Plumbers had quickly contacted their associates to have them rush to the scene to fight off the Ectonurite takeover. Meanwhile, research participants like herself had battled to regain control of their bodies, but each passed out soon after and were unable to join the fight. At large, their nanos had shielded them and helped liberate others, just like how Aoi did for her. While Dexter's and Mandark's teams restored the power, the Plumbers attacked immediately upon arrival. Together, they were able to either destroy or capture the Ectonurites by tricking the last ones to come out of their hosts' bodies and intensifying the lighting systems all across the area—however, they were still scouting to see if any of the ghosts lingered around.

Craning her neck over to the fountain, Silya could see the pair of boy geniuses scrambling to give commands to their robots and the busy scientists. She also noticed the large pile of Spinal-ARCHs that surrounded them, only then realizing that her own was missing. She sighed. It was necessary to destroy any trace of the recent update to ensure the Ectonurite DNA was removed. If it wasn't, that sample would just allow the aliens to take over Fusion Fighters again. Unfortunately, it probably meant that everything else would be set back as well. Albedo was the one who helped the scientists create the update: If he had sabotaged them, then he wouldn't have made it so that the DNA could be cleared easily.

Silya pressed a hand to her pulsing temple. Now, they were all back to square one again. She was going to miss control over those wings…

"_Where are they?!"_

An enraged shout bellowed over crowd, dulling the noise to a hushed murmur. Everyone looked around, bewildered, but it wasn't until they noticed a trio of Plumbers escorting a much smaller figure as it charged through the sea of bodies. Azmuth… Silya didn't need to know why the Galvan was there: She was just glad not to be on the receiving end of the sheer rage that oozed around him. Small as he was, you just didn't mess with a man who could create a bomb from practically anything and then strap it on your back before you could blink.

She felt pretty sorry for her employers though. Even they looked a little nervous about the tiny fury approaching them. All eyes on them, Dexter and Mandark both visibly stiffened as Azmuth lunged the remaining distance over to the fountain, pointing an accusing finger up at the boys with his other hand drawn into a tight fist. "This is exactly why I refused to help you with the Spinal-ARCH! I _warned_ you something like this might happen," he yelled, "but you two went behind my back anyway! Worse, you trusted _Albedo's_ judgement more than mine! Do have _any_ idea what kind of danger you just put your own people through?!"

Neither of the geniuses seemed keen on answering that. Even Mandark's usual attitude seemed doused against the Galvan's fierce reprimand. The research participants looked to one another, wincing. Of course, they had known that Albedo had been involved, but he'd also recently joined the Fusion Fighters in a small alliance. No one trusted him for much: They just trusted Dexter and Mandark more. Hearing that they had spoken to and went against Azmuth though—not only an older and wiser scientist, but also someone who'd dealt with Albedo in the past—was another thing. Not that Azmuth was the most likeable person, but his advice was typically sound.

Were Dexter and Mandark that desperate for a breakthrough? She could understand that, but she'd never imagined they'd take things so far… There was still a chance that Albedo had slipped the Ectonurite DNA into the Spinal-ARCHs' systems in secret, but the two young men prided themselves on logic. Going against Azmuth's advice was the farthest from that.

"If it weren't for some quick thinking on your staff's part," he continued, "The Ectonurites might have ripped apart Tech Square from the inside. They might've stolen war secrets or tampered with planetary defenses. They might've kidnapped everyone here, turning them into puppets for both them _and _Fuse to command! Do you think you would've been prepared for the worst? Could you have shot down your allies, or would you have ordered the ones with their minds still intact to fire at their friends instead?"

Again, the two remained silent. Beyond the occasional sound of a flip switching or robot shifting through its systems, all of Tech Square seemed to have gone quiet. If anyone wanted to rise to their defense, how could they?

Dexter was the fist to compose himself, looking at his feet and shuffling his glasses up the bridge of his nose, "We're sorry, Azmuth—"

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing too: Apologize to _them!_" the Galvan pointed to the crowd, "Your pursuit of science put _their_ lives on their line. Not mine. If your actions cost Earth dearly, I could just return to my own planet."

"Hey, what about Albedo?" questioned Mandark, finally breaking the nerve to speak. "What're you going to do to him after all this?"

Azmuth's eyes narrowed, catching how the dark-haired boy was trying to shift the conversation. One of the Plumbers behind him spoke up, "We've got a team looking for him now. It seems he abandoned his post, so things aren't looking good, but we'll find him."

That came as something of a relief. With a grunt, Silya placed her mug aside and leaned back down. Ben was popular enough that everyone knew his face, so a red and white copy of him couldn't be too hard to spot. Maybe the Plumbers would even give him a good kick in the shin for her when they found him…

Right now, however, she didn't want to worry about Albedo, or the Ectonurites, or the Spinal-ARCH anymore. She just wanted to sleep. Even as Azmuth continued to berate her employers, she began to drift back off. After something like this, they'd all probably be given a bit of leave to recover. She'd probably stick around for a day or two more, then use the rest of the time she was given to check on the city. Maybe take the Monkey Skyway to go to Offworld Plaza and talk to Ben or Vilgax. Although she didn't think she'd ever go to space herself, it couldn't hurt to know a little more about what other kinds of aliens might make their way to Earth.

Within minutes, she was out like a light, enjoying the first dreamless sleep that she'd had in a while.

**THE END**


	4. Eat and Greet

It'd been a while since Silya had been to Sector V. The suburban town was like a breath of fresh air after weeks spent fighting in the Darklands. Of course, just as with most of the main force, she couldn't stay for long: She'd only been allowed to return after taking on a few missions around Goat's Junkyard and signing on to help instruct some of the newer recruits. Lucky for her, she wouldn't be at it alone.

Even if he was still relatively new to the warfront, Tonix was a brother-in-arms she'd known from the beginning. He had his own work to do in the area: That evening, however, was a time to celebrate. It'd been ages since they'd last met up. The agent glanced around the treehouse's improvised mess hall until she noticed a familiar, tall, red hat sticking out from the crowd. She smiled, walking over to the figure with a trayful of food in hand.

"Glad to finally get some real food?" she greeted, sitting across from him at a fold-up table.

Looking up from his meal, the dark-haired young man flashed a grin of his own in pleasant surprise. "Hey, you made it!" he cheered back, swallowing a hefty bite. Then he looked down, poking at some greens with a fork, "Yeah, sure beats the usual rations anyhow—or maybe I'm just that starved."

"You don't know the half of it until you've spent some time over at Townsville Park's base," Silya reached for a nearby salt shaker, "Let's just say that the Scotsman and Max Tennyson aren't two guys who should ever share recipes."

She looked down at the spread in front of her. Really, whoever's turn it was in the kitchen had gone all-out: Rolls, brick-a-broccoli casserole, corn on the clob, roast meef, you name it. Someone had even fried up cinnamon apples. Maybe it could be blamed on the season, but she was thankful for it nonetheless. One person could only stand eating MREs for so long.

"I thought you didn't like Marzipanian food," Tonix commented, pointing at her tray with his fork.

"I don't," she replied, biting into the corn, "but I can stand it—so long as it doesn't talk back to me anyway." Really, she didn't understand most of the strange foods that came from that place. Nevermind the borderline sentient stuff; the idea of burple nurples made her cringe, the gamble with crazy cakes wasn't worth it, and soso souffle was just plain disgusting! There were a handful of good desserts though, and a part of her actually wondered if there were any strudel doodles around.

"Do you still want to go out for ramen sometime?"

"If we could ever _find_ the time. You mean that hole-in-the-wall place you talked about?"

"Yeah, it's close to Marquee Row. Maybe we can drop by if we're both ever stationed in the city together."

Her smile turned bittersweet. It'd be awesome if it weren't for the war sending them both everywhere. If a Fusion Fighter wasn't stationed anywhere specific, it was easy to get caught up running from one mission to the next. The adrenaline was limitless, but all aspects of normalcy were pretty much gone. Rather than say what they already knew though, she nodded, "You know, I get sent to Tech Square a lot as a research participant. Maybe we can find a way to meet up then."

After that, they went quiet for a moment, more than content with filling their empty stomachs. Did she even eat more than a granola bar that day? Silya had started travelling around dawn and had only made it to Sector V within the past hour.

She didn't know when Tonix had arrived, but he seemed to be just as invested in his food. Where had he been stationed last again? She thought he was still assigned to the suburbs, and the locals tended to care for most of the Fusion Fighters' basic needs when possible to do their part for the war effort. Maybe it was partially all of the training keeping him hungry—and the running around on odd jobs for their commanding officers.

When the both of them were halfway through the meal, Tonix asked, "Did you hear that the Morbuckses increased the storage limit at the banks?"

"Already purchased the gold membership." As if slighted by her own, small confession, Silya ripped a hunk of bread off with her teeth. As much as she hated giving into the overall snobby family, they'd pretty much monopolized the banks—probably because there was nothing else compared to their systems. Honestly though, she was desperate. She'd made quiet a collection of armor, weapons, and data files during her travels as an independent agent: It was easier for her to bite the bullet and buy the extra space than to give up on what she'd earned.

He chuckled a bit at her short response, "This is what happens when _someone _wants every sword they find. Don't you use a shattergun most of the time anyway?"

"Keep my Scottish Claymore and Scythe Jr. out of this."

Laughing again, he just shrugged, "Well, the Morbuckses aside, let's take it as a good sign that the banks are growing. Maybe it means that things are finally beginning to get back to normal." Tonix picked up his glass thoughtfully, then raised it toward her in a small toast, "To taking back our planet!"

Silya's grin returned. She mimicked the gesture, clanking her cup against his, and recited a familiar line known to all of the soldiers, "Down with Fuse!"

* * *

_((**Author's Note:** Thanks again to my friend, tonixman, for letting me use your character in this short. :) ))_


	5. Blizzard

Falling back in the snow, Silya quickly raised her shattergun sideways to shield herself from the Terrorpin that loomed over her—its body crashing over hers and fearsome double maw clenching down on the weapon in place of a limb. She couldn't keep it back forever: It was too strong! For a few, fruitless seconds, she wrestled with the creature in attempt to break out from under it. It wasn't until she saw a red blur dart behind it—her Four Arms nano, Powerbomb—that she finally had the advantage. Using his leech attack as he rammed against the Terropin's armored hide, Silya felt part of its energy leave it and draw into herself. The momentary boost was enough for her to summon the muscle needed to push out of the monster's hold and roll to safety, gun levied as she knelt in a crouch to fire at point-blank range.

There was no chance of avoiding that kind of hit. Fusion matter exploded against her suit as the blast tore through flesh, the Terrorpin melting in its own goo soon after. A second of its kind charged her from the right. Turning at the hip, she volleyed off another series of shots to keep it at bay.

Meanwhile, her nanos switched out with the quick timing gained through practice. Recovering from the sudden loss of stamina from his leech attack, Powerbomb spiraled away only for her Buttercup nano to replace him at Silya's side. Without needing the command, she stunned the encompassing monsters, giving both girls enough time to move back. Silya fired again at the second Terrorpin, then at a third once the former dropped to the ground—drawing her sword from her hip to pierce through the soft meat near its neck once the stun effect wore off. It too fell to the ground, staining the white powder with a viscous green.

The danger passed, Silya dropped to her knees, setting down her weapons that—combined—felt like lead weights in her tired grasp. Immediately, she began scooping up fresh snow to clean the fusion matter off of her body. She would need to decontaminate herself later, but it would have to do for now. She was just thankful that her winter gear was thick enough that there was no way the sickening substance that drenched it could reach her flesh. Not yet, anyway: She could still carve through several monsters before the fusion matter itself became a problem.

As it was though, she'd already fought through so many. The armored vehicle she'd taken to deliver a small batch of emergency supplies had broken down, leaving her stranded in the middle of a light snowstorm. There was no turning back. The team of Fusion Fighters working out here needed those supplies and she was too far from Mt. Blackhead anyway. Her only option was to hitch a sled and trudge the remaining distance on foot. Needless to say, she was a slow-moving target attracting plenty of attention. And the fusion monsters didn't seem to mind the cold weather.

Her lungs burned from breathing in the chilled air. Her legs ached from the long trek. There was no stopping though. The Terrorpins she'd just defeated could respawn at any minute, not to mention the storm was getting worse. Standing up, dusting herself off, and sheathing her weapons, the woman shuffled over to where she'd abandoned the sled mid-fight and gave it a quick, visual check. Good: Nothing seemed damaged or missing. Silya picked up the fallen cord and reattached it to the back of her belt, adjusting her face shield with her free hand.

"Back inside your chip, Poppy," she grunted the soft order to her nano as she began to trudge through the snow once more. The sled's hefty weight pulled against her, but soon followed at a steady drag. "I'll call you out if anymore fusions show up."

Her nano, however, continued to hover in the air next to her. The Buttercup lookalike bundled herself against the cold, shivering in her modest jacket and bandana scarf. Silya cursed her lack of foresight: She should've gotten her nanos some winter clothes. Nevermind that—they shouldn't have been out in this weather at all! If the vehicle hadn't broken down, if she was strong enough to fight the fusion monsters on her own, they'd all have stayed safe and warm without ever needing to step outside of their nanochips. No though, they'd had to come to her rescue because she couldn't handle this alone.

"You're tired," Poppy muttered.

"I'll manage," she said.

"You can't keep this up," the nano pressed further.

"_I'll manage,"_ Silya repeated, more forcefully this time. She couldn't help it. When it came to her nanos, her personality could change from a begrudged caretaker, to stern commander, to watchful mother-figure in a heartbeat. Right now, she was the latter two. Although she didn't share their abilities, she was the only one who could pull the sled and could endure a lot more than their small bodies could. She wasn't going to risk any of her nanos' safeties when she didn't have to. She commanded again, "Get back in your chip."

Just as before though, Poppy didn't listen. Stubborn girl. The woman would've been lying if she said she hadn't gotten it from her though. Poppy was her first and one of her closest nanos. No matter how many more Silya had gotten, she was still often chosen for most of her assignments. And, like a lot of the others, it was hard to get her to obey an order once she'd set her mind against it.

With a huff of defeat, Silya paused to remove her face shield and bundled her hood tighter around herself. She handed the former over to Poppy for additional cover. It wasn't much, but the mask was big enough to act as a blanket for her tiny size. The dark-haired girl took it gratefully, pulling it over herself and then nestling on Silya's shoulder for additional warmth.

Silya continued walking, ignoring the biting winds as they picked up around her. Her surroundings were beginning to whiteout. She had to hurry.

What she wouldn't have given for some hot chocolate, or even a can of that nasty Nog Cola sounded perfect to her right then. She was still safe from fusion matter, but she could feel the cold piercing through her gloves, numbing her hands. If she could just reach her fellow soldiers' campsite, she could crash in one of their tents for a while and then try to figure out what to do about her abandoned car the next morning. Make her way back to Mt. Blackhead for a well-earned rest until her next assignment.

A moment's relief fell over the woman as she reached the top of a small hill. _Good. You can drag me around for a second, _she thought as she moved to the back of the sled and balanced herself on top of one of the strapped down crates, feet wedged on either side of it. Poppy clung tighter to the fabric of her coat. Soon, with a push of momentum, they were coursing down the mild slope.

It wasn't long before she had to get back on her feet once more. About twenty-minutes passed without trouble before she thought she heard the dull, distant roar of a fusion monster. By then, the blizzard made it impossible to see much though and if she could've traced any footprints, the snow wiped them out before she could find them. The only saving grace was that it also hid her own from any trackers.

Her heart leapt when she thought she saw the hulking form of another Terrorpin about ten meters away—stopping dead in her tracks with a hand instinctively reaching for her shattergun. Training was all that held her fire long enough for her to notice that the figure ahead didn't move. The odd sight was enough to beckon her cautiously forward until she could make out the shape better.

It was just rocky overhang. Made sense, since they were so close to the Pimpleback Mountains. It didn't look very large, but was definitely big enough to block off some of the snow and the boulders that surrounded it made for additional cover. There were even traces of an old firepit lying hidden in a guarded corner, likely from where some other Fusion Fighter had come along and needed a place to bunker down for a while.

It was like a welcomed oasis. Nevertheless, she still had a job to do. Silya took the sight as a checkpoint: The camp couldn't have been much further away. If she just hurried—

All at once, she heard Poppy sniffle quietly, a jerky shudder coursing through her small frame as she fought to hide a sneeze or a cough. She was trying to be a good trooper, but to Silya it came off as a warning. She froze in her tracks, looking back at the overhang.

She turned back. A part of her hated herself for it, but she did. She just couldn't make any gambles with her nanos lives. Promising to herself only to stay long enough to get warmed up and wait out the worst of the blizzard, she checked to see what she could use.

The space was more than large enough for her and Poppy, but the sled wouldn't fit. She'd have to find another way to hide it. With a quick glance around, she spotted a large evergreen with low enough branches for her to pin down over the supplies and keep them out of sight, the camouflage aided with a thin, green cover she fished out of one of the crates and the snowfall. Immediately after, she hid both Poppy and herself away back beneath the overhang, laying a second sheet under them and propping the nano in her lap as she dug through her own gear for a chunk of magnesium and flint.

In moments, using a few, scattered pieces of dried grass and wood left behind by the overhang's last 'guest,' she had a small fire going. It wouldn't last long: She just wanted to get something started right then to get them both warm. If it looked like it would go out before they were ready to leave, she'd hunt the nearby trees for more to burn herself.

Poppy sank in the woman's lap in silent relief, taking in the heat of the fire and her companion. She seemed cozy. Trying to hide a tired smile, Silya adjusted the sheet beneath them: They'd lose more heat to the ground than they would to the bitter winds if they weren't careful. Soon enough, her nano was bundled against her stomach, curled in a ball with the face shield wrapped snugly over her.

The woman looked to the outside world. Although the rocks hid them, she couldn't help worrying that a fusion monster might still sniff them out. The space was closed enough that something as large as a Terrorpin or Spider Toad couldn't get to them, but a Slime Serpent might. And there wasn't a second exit for them to slip through either… It worried her.

Whatever: She could keep watch. Beating the cold was what mattered right then. There was no talking her into getting some rest—not until they had truly reached safety—but she tried to force herself to relax.

_Soon enough, Fuse,_ she wanted to tell the intergalactic tyrant, _your goons won't send us cowering like this in the cold. _Soon enough, they would take their world back and run all of his fusion monsters off for good. Then, maybe next year, she and her nanos could spend a snowy day like this safe and warm somewhere else.


	6. Icy Imagery

_((**Author's Note:** This story is actually a combination of two different prompts I worked on: One for the 2019 Christmas Event and the other relating to the items collected from it. As such, they kind of run together, but it was a neat experiment to explore these different ideas. Enjoy!)) _

**Icy Imagery**

A long, tired sigh escaped the woman's lips as she collapsed onto her assigned cot. It was a nightmare: Fuse's army had pushed deep within the Ice Kingdom, chasing away many of its denizens—with one of which, the Ice King himself, making a new home in the south side of Pokey Oaks until Finn, Jake, and the Fusion Fighters sent with them could regain his territory. Now, not only had he erected a giant spire of ice in place of his castle right in the middle of the neighborhood, but a swarm of penguin-like fusion monsters and ice titans had followed him there. The mounting problems required a full evacuation.

On top of everything, it was little wonder to some why so many fusion monsters tracked the Ice King down. Normally, when Fuse conquered an area, that was that: He was too confident in his own power to worry about whether or not regular civilians escaped, too self-assured that all of Earth would inevitably fall under his domain. If Fuse was after the Ice King, it was because he considered him a genuine threat.

There was some debate over how much Imaginary Energy the wizard could wield, and rumors that he used to be some kind of genius. Silya didn't know about all of that, but he certainly wasn't… normal. Perfectly mad, a trait she could actually admire—so long as he didn't hurt anyone. Really though, he was also kind of a nuisance. As many Fusion Fighters had come to his aid, fortifying the spire and working together to protect him until he could go back to the Ice Kingdom, he was treating all of them like hired help. Even two _fusions_ had shown up—one of himself and one version of a penguin he called 'Gunter'—and he wasn't taking that seriously! Without a doubt, this mission went high on the long list of aggravating jobs she'd taken since joining the war.

_"Wenk!"_

_Oh yeah, and apparently, I'm a penguin mom now…_ Silya wiped at her face before glancing toward the wide, dark eyes that meet her own peridot ones. The tiny bird flopped on its side by her on the cot, blinking with myopic innocence. He was her "reward" from the Ice King: One of many passed out to the soldiers for guarding his penguins. Honestly though, she practically already had thirty-six kids the way her nanos behaved. She didn't need one more.

_"Wenk!" _the penguin curled up closer to her side. Had it imprinted on her? A part of her hoped not. Although, a part of her hated herself more for already growing attached to the small fry.

Her wristcom buzzed to life. Pulling back her sleeve, she only barely recognized the number and answered it all too late by the time she realized who the call was from. Before she could cut it off, the Ice King's face appeared as a small hologram. "Hey, there! _Finally_, somebody picks up! Do you have any idea how many calls I've made today just trying to get _anyone? _A lot, that's how many."

Silya hid back her frayed nerves with a small, awkward grin, but her voice still came out somewhat bitter, "What do you need, Ice King?"

If he noticed, he didn't show it. Really, he just seemed glad that she didn't immediately hang up—no doubt like many others had first. "So yeah! A few guys told me about this 'Imaginary Energy' stuff and how you use it to beat those goop monsters—like, it comes from you, but you still need weapons? They tried explaining, but it just sounds like none of you actually know what you're doing to me. If it's anything like magic though, I figured—I don't know—maybe I could give some pointers tomorrow. I've been calling to see who's interested and your boss mentioned you and some other people. Anyway, you in?"

It took her a moment to make sense of his mess of words. The second after though, she was shaking her head and cursing the operation's commander. "What? No—! No thank you, Ice King," she grunted, sitting up. Her penguin flopped into her lap immediately after. Was this really happening? What was happening right now? "I don't think you know how complicated Imaginary Energy is. It's not as simple as magic: There's a science to it. We use our tech as a means of drawing it out and manipulating it around us in a stable form, as a protective measure and to enhance our weapons."

Was she really having to explain this? To _him, _of all people? There were scientists that could go into more detail than she could with more patience than Silya had to spare. Sure, he had ice powers, but that was only thanks to his crown. What made him think that he knew anything about Imaginary Energy—which, apparently, he'd only _just _heard about in the first place?

"Look, I can pass you over to someone at Dexlabs or Mandark Industries. They can explain it better," she offered. She didn't want to just brush him off, but this was one headache she wanted to avoid. "Besides, you shouldn't be wandering around. Fusion You is still—"

Ice King cut her off before she could say anything else, his hands on his hips, "I don't need to listen to a bunch of nerds! And who ever said magic was simple? I'll have you know I worked hard to master a lot of my moves."

"They're just not the same, alright?"

"Alright then, smarty-pants, well, if you know so much, then I guess you can tell me what an imagination zone is, right? Huh? _Huh?_" His eyebrows seem to rise with every emphasized word and he pressed his face closer to the screen, the hologram distorting in reaction.

She stared at him, bewildered. She didn't answer him: No, that was news to her. There were people that could create miniature worlds thanks to Imaginary Energy: It was a rare phenomenon though, caused by people with insanely high amounts of IE who inevitably never could describe just how they did it. The way the wizard talked about it, however, it almost sounded common. Maybe it was an Ooo thing.

Her silence only encouraged him and the smile returned to his face, "See? I know my stuff! You could learn something! I'm not promising anything, but it could be fun. We'll be like the guys that hang out in those kung-fu movies. I'll bring snacks!" Her eyes widened as he leaned back to look at a long list that came into the transmitter's view. How many people was he calling over this?! "I'll go ahead and put you down as a 'yes.' We're meeting a little ways up the spire around noon, and don't be late, ok? Bye!"

Silya couldn't get another word in before he hung up on her. As the hologram evaporated, she stared at the screen a second longer and then held her head in her hands in exasperation. The penguin rolled off her lap and sat up next to her, watching and then mimicking her.

Technically, she didn't _have _to go. Her next shift to guard the Ice King wasn't for a few more days and she was just one face in a crowd of thousands: He'd forget her in a heartbeat and pester somebody else. He could act like such a doofus that she wasn't even afraid and what he was capable of if she upset him. Still, she didn't _not_ like him and, if she was honest, he actually made a few good points. She worked for Dexter and the boy genius was absolutely against the magical arts, meaning that she was rarely exposed to more than Imaginary Energy's scientific elements. Little was known about IE as it was. And she wanted to understand it more than anything… If the Ice King knew something—by some insane piece of luck—then maybe she should give him a chance.

_"Wenk…" _The woman glanced down as her penguin wrapped one of its wings over her arm and cuddled up against her. It seemed sleepy, but content to be by her side. She patted it lightly on the head with her free hand, still deep within her own thoughts.

_Maybe it wouldn't hurt to hear him out, _she mused, _It's just for one afternoon. _Any bit of new information she could learn would be worth dealing with his madness for that long.

* * *

The next day—bundled in layers of clothes with a large, black sweater draped over her—Silya marched up the spire to find around a dozen soldiers at one of its lowest bases all gathered by the Ice King's all but forced invitation. Everyone had a holstered weapon, but fortunately, the area had already been cleared of Penguin Pests. The Ice King had manifested a table beforehand, and had laid a small spread of chips, veggies, dip, liters of Super Porp, and what looked like some kind of potato salad, but they were either slushed or frozen by the time anyone got there. Despite this, everyone had one snack or another pushed on them.

Waiting for the last of the stragglers to arrive, Silya sloshed her iced drink around in its cup without taking a sip, not for the first time that day rethinking her decisions in life. She wondered how insane she had to be to let herself get talked into this and whether or not it would amount to anything. Maybe she'd just spent so much time as one of Dexter's lab rats that rational thought had abandoned her a long time ago.

Whatever the reason—passion, desperation, or her own madness—there she was, standing in the cold, about to take lessons from a raving lunatic. Well, at least she wasn't the only one crazy enough to be there…

Even if only a few others showed up after her. Their pitiful numbers didn't deter the wizard: He just glanced them over with a thoughtful pout and affirming nod before deciding to himself that they'd waited long enough. He raised his arms in a calling gesture, "Alright, alright, everybody, settle down."

No one was saying much to begin with, all dialogue confined to a dull murmur, but they stopped to fire incredulous glances at him all the same.

The Ice King took on an authoritative persona that was almost comical, pacing in front of them as if he were their commander, ready to lead them into battle. "Now, I'm sure you're all wondering why I've called you here… It's because your brains are all mush!" He waved his arms at the group. "You're telling me that you all are capable of drawing from some kind of superpower, but you can't even use it without a bunch of sciency junk? If it's _imaginary energy_, then you should focus on using your imaginations a little."

"Easier said than done…" someone muttered to Silya's left. They were right. This was just the kind of thing she was worried about. IE went a lot farther than what the Ice King described—if it didn't, then it would've been seen used in almost every aspect of human life—so, no, just 'using their imaginations' wasn't enough. She glanced back the way she came, already considering her escape.

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air. Who knew what kind of response he was expecting, but clearly whatever speech the wizard had prepared didn't go much farther than what he'd already said. He glanced over the group again, the kind of look of his face that begged for someone else to step in. When no one did, he held his hands up, "Uh… look, maybe it'd just be easier if I show you."

A light blue aura shimmered around his fingers, a clear sign to everyone of Ice King's elemental magic. Some recoiled instinctively, hands lingering by their sheathes and holsters. Instead of directing it at anyone there, however, Ice King instead aimed for the ground. The magic scattered at their feet, manifesting in crackling icy, geometric patterns. Then it swarmed around them, a cold chill pouring over them like a sudden, snowy blast of air. Silya shielded her face from the winds with one arm, reaching for her sword with her free hand in case a stray bolt of ice trapped her legs.

Despite the Ice King's bad history of encasing people in ice, however, none of them were harmed. Instead, the frosty cloud distorted their surroundings into some kind of strange, starry void washed in shades of green. The spire was gone and they were left hovering in the air. A mix of excitement and panic took over the group.

"What is this? Where are we?!"

"Is this some kind of imaginary world?"

"It can't be. I'm checking the readings now, but I'm only picking up low traces of IE."

Silya said nothing, taking it all in. There was no way this could be an imaginary world. Not that she'd ever had the chance to explore one herself, but no one could just summon one up like that! Besides, it didn't look like much of any kind she'd seen from the reports about them: They were always spawned with some kind of wonderland-like element to them. There was nothing here. Nothing besides them…

Her eyes fell on the Ice King as their brief talk from yesterday entered her mind. Sure enough, he called them back to attention with a proud grin on his face, "Fellas, you're in my imagination zone! Pretty cool, right?" He wiggled his brows. "It's like a mindscape where anything goes. Even Finn's got one of these—and he's got the imagination of a missing sock!"

"Mindscape?" a young man echoed to her right.

Were they all currently somehow connected to the Ice King's thoughts then? Like some form of telepathy? She grimaced, unsure of how comfortable she actually was with that…

"Yeah, everyone's got one they can go to. Or _should,_ I mean, I guess you shmoes never figured that out. But that's about to change." The Ice King hunted through his robes until he withdrew a worn, ruddy blue book. "You guys read my fanfiction, right? Since the ideas are all written out for you, it shouldn't be a problem bringing Fiona and Cake and the rest into the world."

Caught between a mix of irritation and guilt, Silya didn't know what to feel worse. _Did he make us come here just to see if we could bring his fanfiction to life?_ It didn't exactly surprise her: Of course there was a catch. There was always something like this no matter what villain joined the Fusion Fighters. On the other hand, he had such an eager, puppy-like expression on his face that she felt bad for him. She bit her lower lip. While she didn't have the hurt to dump her copy, she'd buried that brick of text somewhere so deep into her storage bank she didn't even know where to find it without combing through everything.

One look at the others told her that none of them had read it either. Few of them answered him, and the ones that did had some excuse or another:

"I've been fighting fusion monsters, so I haven't really gotten a chance to sit down with it…"

"Y-yeah! A-and it'd be a shame to rush through the story: It's so… detailed."

Miraculously, it worked, although the wizard still seemed disappointed. He lowered the book, muttering a faint 'oh,' before a sudden anger took over him directed at no one in particular. "Well, this was a waste of time!" The charge of emotion came and went, replaced with an excited smile, "Oh wait! I can just read some of the good parts aloud right here then! Makes sense, since it'll keep us all on the same page."

This time, at last, Silya finally interjected, raising her voice as a look of dread passed over the soldiers, "I think we're good, Ice King." Caught under his curious stare, she thought up something quick, "Think about it: No one's gonna know your characters quite like you do anyway, so even if we managed to create them, they wouldn't _exactly _be the same."

She wasn't lying: It was a case that happened all the time with imaginary friends. People had their own needs, desires, and impressions, and those things always imprinted on imaginary beings. It was even the case with their nanos, who took traits from themselves as often as they did their original counterparts.

"Artistic interpretation and all…" she finished, scratching the back of her head. "So, if you want to see Fionna and Cake, don't you want them to be just like _you've_ written them?"

He stared at her hard for a long moment—so long that she wondered if he'd snap again—but instead his expression turned a little sad and he dropped his gaze to the book in his hands with a casual shrug. "Yeah, sure, but I tried all that before. Even kidnapped some buddies of mine to find a life-giving mage to do it, but it didn't work. Took forever to write all the stories again after that…"

She wasn't even going to ask: Somehow, she just knew that they and the Ice King had _extremely _different ideas about "buddies." However, it gave her an idea for how they all could get what they wanted. "How about a trade then? There this place called _Fosters'_ that specializes in imaginary friends. They might be able to help out. You show us how to enter our own imaginary zones and we'll get you in contact_ Fosters'_."

Silya could feel the eyes drilling into the back of her skull from her fellow soldiers. They could judge her all they wanted. Frankie would probably kill her for passing the Ice King along like this, but after all the times she'd had to look after Cheese in the Darklands, the young woman felt that turnabout was fair play. If this was their chance of getting one step closer to mastering IE, then it was worth it: He could make an army of Fionnas for all she cared.

Before she could get an answer though, one of the other Fusion Fighters spoke up, "Wait… If this is a mindscape, then what about our _physical_ bodies?"

The area went so silent that you could hear a pin drop. All heads turned to them, eyes wide with growing realization. The wizard answered somewhat dismissively, "Duh, this is an _imagination_ zone: It's not like I could bring those here. You're lucky I was able to get everyone here at all. I never tried it with so many people."

"But if we're all here, then who's watching our backs in the _real world?!_"

* * *

When the group came back to the real world, it was with a mix of relief and fury. Some were outraged over their bodies being left exposed to whatever sort of monster might attack them, others were just glad that nothing had. Either way, the little "get-together" that the Ice King had formed to try to teach them about imaginary energy soon fell apart.

Silya had to admit though—even as she soon left the group herself—it wasn't a total loss. Experiencing an imagination zone had been a step in the right direction and the wizard later recommended contacting a dog named Jake that had used IE before in the real world, albeit with very little control. It was _something_ and that in itself was more than she could've wished for. Maybe the Ice King wasn't as bad as she initially thought: Still pretty annoying an oblivious to himself, but not exactly bad…

She'd never been to Ooo. Most people hadn't, as it was a part of the world that had remained fairly isolated for hundreds of years. Maybe they'd picked up something about IE in a way that no one else had during all that time. Maybe she could master it for herself. It made her hopeful.

All of a sudden, her wristcom buzzed to life. The woman looked down at the small screen and saw the mission commander's name pop up. Strange, since it was her day off and if there was any trouble, she was high enough to see it coming for miles. Nevertheless, she accepted the call, "Talk to me."

The commander's rough tenor sounded from the device, "Hey, how far are you from base camp?"

She smirked. Whenever someone asked something like that, it usually meant they had a job ready for her. "Not far. Climbing down the Spire now. What do you need?"

"It's about some of the gear we found battling the fusions. Come to the command post. You can bring your nanos, but come alone."

She raised a brow at that last order. Not that she didn't trust him—she was already on her way—but it did worry her. The woman went through all kinds of missions, but she was rarely let privy to some of the secretive info from her higher-ups. Unless she did a bit of investigating herself anyway. "Sounds serious… I'm guessing this little meeting is on a need-to-know basis then?"

"For _now_," he answered somewhat pointedly, as if he could read her thoughts, "We're not really sure what to make of things yet. You'll be briefed on arrival. Just get here as soon as you can."

Short and to the point, the commander didn't wait for a goodbye before signing off. Ice and snow crunched beneath her boots as Silya leapt from level to level. Although she kept her eyes peeled for fusion monsters, she couldn't help wondering what this was about. All of the soldiers had acquired a ton of new equipment: Reclaimed supplies from their enemies; gifts from certain, holiday benefactors and family alike, you name it. Even the Ice King himself had brought along some things from Ooo—to share with "his new pals" since he was staying under their watch for some time. New clothes, weapons, data, and even simple trinkets had all been passed out by the bundle. What exactly did the higher-ups find that was worth this much focus?

About twenty minutes had passed before she came close to getting an answer. Reaching the bottom of the Spire and crossing over to the northeast side of the block, she reached Command without any trouble. To the outside onlooker, there was nothing substantially different about it from the rest of the nearby homes: This wasn't meant to be a permanent location in the least, so the Fusion Fighters had just set up in whichever of the evacuated buildings suited them. When they time came to leave, it would practically be like there were never there at all. However, the handful of scattered soldiers positioned around the area was an evident security.

Someone had already alerted the guard at the door. It swung open for Silya and her ID was swiped before she could even knock. Once cleared, she was led through the empty dwelling down to its basement.

It was always strange enough, entering another person's home when you didn't even know them. It was worse when the building's actual inhabitants weren't even around. However, nothing quite matched the discomfort of walking down into the windowless, modesty lit space to face a small crowd of other strangers who didn't belong there either—no matter how nicely furnished the room actually was, like a sort of game room. It was quiet. Computers and papers were scattered about, monitoring the streets above or listed with strategies for battling the fusions. The soldiers that'd been called together stared at her as she moved in, then quickly lost interest.

There wasn't much chatter going on, not until the last two people arrived just after Silya did. In that time, Silya was able to get another good look around, her eyes stopping to the contained object sitting on the messy pool table in the middle of them. It was a standard issue, force-field containment unit: A much smaller version of the machinery created to block off fusion matter in infection zones. What the unit contained was less normal.

By now, almost everyone had some kind of replica of Ice King's crown to add to their wartime mementos. This one, however, was coated a viscous, dark green and lacked the usual, metallic shine. The "rubies" that decorated its surface looked like giant, bubbled-up sores instead of gems. This was _Fusion_ Ice King's crown, or at least a copy of it.

Since it looked as though it were made of pure fusion matter, why it hadn't melted with the rest of him was beyond the woman. It had to have a high concentration of the stuff at least, otherwise there'd be no point in containing it. Unless they were going to try to purify it though, why keep it at all?

Silya took a seat, just staring at the headpiece for a long while. A minute passed before she recognized a familiar face among them, another research participant like her—although, since she couldn't remember where she saw them, they probably worked for Mandark instead of Dexter. There didn't seem to be a pattern to anyone else present: The commander, a couple of SACT agents, a Monkey Skyway agent, a KND operative, and a few other assorted guns. An odd batch, but there had to be a reason to bring them all in.

At last, the commander stepped over to the table. He looked across their group, checking to see if everyone he called in had made it, then shouted for someone upstairs to close the basement door. As it shut with a faint clack, his hand hovered over the shielded container.

"I think you've all had a good look at this little accessory by now," he grunted, the sarcasm in his voice not really matching his serious expression, "Some soldiers found it after a raid at the top of the Spire, chasing off both of Ice King's and that penguin's Fusions. We don't know if there were any others dropped.

"For those of you out of the loop, the Ice King's true crown was made from a dangerous type of magic. In exchange for giving the wearer power over the ice and snow, it slowly warps their mind. Like the Ice King, his fusion shared this power.

"You may notice," and here he pointed to the strange, red bulges along the crown's surface, "that these are a far-cry from the gems set in the original. Our researchers found that they're made of a similar substance to other, off-color compounds of fusion matter. While the crown does seem to be the primary source of the fusion's powers—again, like with the Ice King's own—it failed to match the large traces of magic that the original rubies possess. This confirms the trend where a fusion's abilities can only draw from the essences of the people they're copied from."

The commander pressed a few controls on the containment unit. In a few seconds, the force fields went down and he picked it up with his bare hands. Every soldier around him cringed, and even Silya looked on with a pained grimace—as if she could feel the material burning through her skin.

However, the commander himself didn't make such a face. Instead, he held the crown out for all to see in a reassuring way, twisting it around in his hands. "This may be made from pure fusion matter, but it doesn't leak," he explained, "It's just like any other object we've found left from a fusion's destabilized remains. With the crown supposedly being Fusion Ice King's source of magic, however, we have to consider what kind of power it might still possess."

She thought over his words. It made sense: If the crown held all of the Ice King's power, then its fusion would actually be more dangerous than Fusion Ice King himself. However, it wasn't normal for there to be fusion versions of _objects. _There was a Fusion Computress, sure, but she had so much personality it was a wonder if she actually had a soul as a type of sentient, synthetic lifeform. A crown was just that: A crown. It didn't have a personality. It wasn't alive… right?

It wasn't like she knew much about the actual crown to make that kind of guess. Either way, the SACT agent beside her voiced what she questioned herself, "Why not just destroy it then? It's not tech, so we can't siphon any kind of data from it. And it'd probably kill anyone of us if we tried to use it."

Another soldier spoke up. She didn't look like she was a part of any division, so she must've been an independent agent. "There's more to the Ice King's crown than just power. Our informants from Ooo said that it might have a type of collective consciousness from its past owners…. "encoded" into it, in a way. That could mean that the crown _does _have some kind of buried information we could use."

The commander nodded, "But we know that Fusion Ice King was the soul wearer of his crown. So, which of its abilities might parallel to that collective consciousness?"

Silya's brows furrowed, but it didn't take her long to reach an answer. _The Fusion hivemind… _Her fists tightened in her lap. That had to be it. Someone cursed under their breath, reaching the same conclusion. The hivemind was how all of Fuse's minions stayed connected, but it couldn't be accessed by anyone outside of it without experiencing heavy exposure to fusion matter. At the kind of level that could kill a person if the hive's inevitable control didn't drive them insane first. She'd seen it happen to Kevin Levin, when he thought his Osmosian DNA could stand against it. It took a stronger hold of him instead…

But if they could access it through something like the crown, would it really be the same? The crown was a tool. It was _made _of fusion matter, but it was also in a stable enough form not to radiate the stuff. If it did, the commander's hands would've looked like he'd dunked them in acid right about then. Was this their way in? A safe means of listening to the hivemind without it trying to use them in turn?

Some of the others didn't think so. "You already said that the original crown drives anyone who wears it insane," barked another soldier, "What makes you think this one won't? It'd probably be worse! Even if it can't infect a person with fusion matter directly, it still might do more permanent damage to someone's mind."

"I know," the commander answered, to everyone's surprise, "Maybe it can possess people. Maybe it'll make a person more susceptible to the effects of fusion matter without killing them. Maybe Fuse wanted us to find this crown, so he could get a puppet not limited to all of fusion matter's weaknesses.

"Or maybe we found a chink in his armor. We won't know unless we test it."

The entire room fell silent. Everyone knew that there was only one way they _could _test it. Someone had to be the guinea pig. Someone had to put it on.

Slowly, Silya began to notice how a few pairs of eyes fell on both her and the other research participant. Of course no one wanted to do it. Of course they were the ones people looked to to make that gamble: They did it all the time, even before the war started, by signing themselves over to Dexter's and Mandark's experiments. That's what it always meant when you worked as a lab rat. Even the monkey—working for Mojo—knew what their type of work was like and wasn't out of the question.

"It'd be better if someone with a high imaginary energy did it," the commander continued, as if to drawn attention away from the three, "That way, their natural energies would be more likely to fight off the crown's effects if something does go wrong."

That explained the odd pool of Fusion Fighters called in, although it made Silya wonder why she was one of them. If it was because she worked for Dexter that was one thing, but she didn't consider herself to have a high IE. She'd never had an imaginary friend like some did growing up. She'd never created an imaginary environment and the idea seemed impossible to her. Even her nanos… She had _a lot_ of them, but her Numbuh Two nano—Shakes—was a somewhat unstable creation because she'd been careless. She wasn't fit for the job.

But no one volunteered for it. They sat still, looking at each other nervously. They'd all probably died and had been revived at least once, but no form of status or pay could lure them into risking their _minds _by putting that crown on. It didn't matter what the commander said.

Silya clenched her teeth, bouncing her leg anxiously against the ground. She'd only just been offered a new way to learn about imaginary energy. Whatever the crown would do to her, she didn't need it wearing her down. And it would—she _knew_ it would! It would put on strain on her ability to channel IE and attack her sanity.

But this wasn't about her. They just needed a lab rat. And the Fusion Fighters could use the access to that hivemind.

She didn't even look. She just raised her hand in a tired way, sighing through her nose. The commander looked at her, offering up a small, appreciative smile.

"Someone with experience and a strong will… Good. I'd heard how you endured that Ectonurite infiltration over in Tech Square. You might be braced for something like this."

They wanted to start immediately. Just a small test, he said. It didn't seem so small though when he had her sit in a wooden chair with her arms bound to its own and her nanos helping look over her after they were briefly explained about the situation. Someone had a Blossom nano with the antidote ability on standby. Someone left a medkit open and another soldier prepared to record the experiment. The commander promised she'd see a bonus for this. Silya cursed him anyway. The rest left.

Her nanos—of Buttercup, Demongo, and Four Arms—were her standard team. Each of them had their own orders: To drain her energy if she lost control of herself, to stun her if the restraints didn't work, and to purge whatever was controlling her if possible. She could tell they were just as nervous as she was. She tried to reassure them with a fake, smug grin.

The commander left it to her call then, standing beside her with the crown in hand. Briefly, Silya thought of the Ice King and she hoped she didn't turn out like him. She hoped she didn't turn into something _much_ _worse _because of the fusion matter's influence.

She said she was ready even though no one could ever be for something like this.

* * *

_The instant the crown touched her head, everything went black. And then it turned green._

_Even with the warnings, Silya wasn't fully braced for the visions that clouded her mind. It felt like she was drowning. It poured into her lungs, flooded her veins, and soaked into every fiber of her body. It devoured everything she was until she couldn't recognize herself anymore—just a drop lost to a sea of fusion matter. _

_Then came the voices. For a while, she couldn't make any sense of them: It was just a whirlpool of chaotic sound. Bit by bit though, she was able to grasp onto a few strings of dialogue:_

_"…creatures in Ooo are stronger than we thought. Do we…"_

_"…still think they can put up a…"_

_"…fight until all that's left are smears of erin and crimson…"_

_None of it was directed at her, much to her relief: It didn't seem like whoever or whatever was speaking didn't notice her listening in on the complicated network. She didn't have to try to keep silent either, her mind was assaulted by so many visions and noise all at once that much of any thought of her own was instantly drowned out. It hurt, but she tried to focus._

_She saw rolling hills dotted by sporadic, newly sprouting terrafusers, the grasses surrounding them curling with decay as the infection started taking over the land. Somewhere else, she could see from a monster's eyes, attacking her own people with a wide gash from a blade sliced across her hip. In another place, she spotted a shadow looming overhead, a hand waving over an army in command to charge._

_"…the Lord wishes…"_

_"…he wants…"_

_"…put an end to their forces before we…"_

_These weren't her orders, but the voices were all consuming. She fought them, tried to brush past them to grasp on a single strand of thought, demanded that she find just one useful piece of information in the mess._

But then someone yanked the crown off before she could. The young woman hadn't realized that she'd been holding her breath until a rush of clean air filled her lungs. She fists were drawn tightly against the arms of the chair, her gaze focused on the ground to steady herself as her mind caught up with her body. Where was she again? Was this real? Was this right?

There it was: The hard grey of the basement floor. The soft details of her winter gear and the firm cushion of the seat under her. A cold sweat trailing down her neck and her own heart hammering in her chest. She was herself again.

"Did you see anything?"

It was the commander. It took her a second, but Silya realized that was the second time he'd asked her that. She still hesitated to answer, looking around for her nanos first. Just like when she'd left them, they were waiting for her at the ready—their faces etched with worry. She tried to offer them a smile like before, but it appeared more tired this time. She mouthed the word, 'easy,' because she still didn't have the strength to speak just yet.

"Silya, did you see anything?"

Someone cleared her of any fusion matter exposure. And she was sound enough that they started removing the cords at her wrists. They ached. She rubbed them, wondering if she'd fought against the bindings while she was out of it. The commander placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it. She blinked up at him, fighting to remember.

At last she sighed, "There's too much…" then looked away again, "It's kind of amazing, actually… There was so much going on, but it's like you can't grab on to any of it."

She could barely remember. It was all a mess, but without the crown everything she'd witnessed now only seemed like noises and shapes. And green. She didn't like admitting it, but it scared her—to the point that she quickly ran through all of her personal knowledge in her head to test herself. She took another deep breath: Everything seemed right.

One of the scientists idled over to her, a tablet in hand as he skimmed over her files, asking herself some of the same questions she already did: Her name, her age, what division was she with, where did she work, and so on. They had her nanos double-check some of her answers. Everything checked out, besides the lack of information she had on what she'd just gone through. It was standard though, no different than what most reportedly experienced after heavy exposure to fusion matter. Although the crown didn't radiate the stuff, it apparently had similar enough effects.

They asked her if she wanted it back. She didn't. At all. That was enough to relieve some of their fears for the moment.

After locking it away, the commander paced the room. The sound of typing clicked around them as the scientists recorded all that had happened. After a minute, the commander finally looked toward her again, "Thank you for trying, anyway. We might call you back to run another test, but for now let's just make sure that there are no prolonged effects. I'll contact Dexlabs to let them know how today's test went. I want you to report back if you remember anything or if any visions come to you on their own."

She nodded, standing up and casting a glance at her nanos, "Think you guys can help keep an eye on me for the next few days? If I start spacing out, I want you to call me out on it."

Her Four Arms nano crossed his arms over his chest, shedding some of the tension that remained in his somewhat nervous grin, "When _don't_ we keep an eye out for you? If you start acting funny—funnier than usual, anyway—we'll be here to shake some sense back into you."

"Good idea," the commander nodded, "You're sharing quarters with the other soldiers, right? I know you take on primarily solo missions, but it'll be good to stay around other people for a time, just in case something happens."

If something happens: The polite way to say 'if she did manage to go insane.' She grabbed her things, "I don't plan on leaving the Spire for a while anyway. I'm signed-on here until the Ice King is sent back and everything's melted."

After that, who knew where she'd be reassigned. If she kept going through with these tests, she probably wouldn't be able to go back to the Darklands anytime soon. Who knew when Dexter would call her in for her work as a research participant: He was neck-deep in the nano project at the time. Maybe this was her chance to take a small break from fighting fusions, or at least just find an easier post somewhere for a while.

She saw herself out, flattening her hair and bundling up her hood before going back to the cold of the outside world. Her nanos briefly followed before zipping back into the chips at her belt, leaving her alone with her thoughts. There were still a lot of people around. If the fusion's crown did have lasting effects, there were plenty of witnesses to catch her.

Necessary as it was, she hoped they didn't call her back in for more tests. She risked fusion matter exposure on a daily basis, but it was another thing to try to dive right into Fuse's hivemind. And if that was just a glimpse of it, then she couldn't be happier to scrub the stuff off the face the Earth.


	7. New Nanos

As always when a new nano was introduced, there was a huge crowd surrounding the Great Machine. Nevertheless, the size of it was staggering. Normally, Fusion Fighters just got the data for new nanos them sent straight to their comm units-it being too difficult to pull in so many of their numbers from across the warfront to the machine otherwise. Only curious eyes and those signed on to the nano project typically came in-person for the reveal. Not this time. Dexter's widespread announcement about the project's latest 'success' had been sent to every soldier in the force.

Silya was furious with him over it.

The team had made a nano without an original model-the _Unstable Nano_, as they chose to call it. The woman had seen plenty of unstable nanos on the warfront: Things didn't typically go well for them, and she'd nearly lost one of her own due to a careless creation. Why they would _deliberately_ make one with an unstable form was beyond her, but beating some sense into the boy genius wasn't.

She saw the nano first, hovering above a platform with a scientist standing next to it. Fusion Fighters gathered around it to gawk at, but she could make out its glob-like, humanoid form. Beyond that, it had no distinguishable features except for it's vivid green flesh-all too much like unpurified fusion matter for her liking.

"_Dex, where are you?!"_ she shouted over the crowd. A few heads turned her way curiously, but went back to their own, excited chatter soon after. She didn't spot him, just a Dexbot and Mandroid at opposite ends of the machine. Cowards, leaving their robots to the job. They both of them were too prideful _not _to revel in their latest 'success' before the masses-not unless they knew they'd crossed a line.

She'd come after Mandark later: Dexter's involvement had made the whole thing _personal_. She didn't care if he was her boss! He _knew_ how she felt about unstable nanos! Had known practically from the moment she returned from the future with the other missing research participants to hand over the blueprints to make them! How could he do this, knowing how dangerous it was for the nanos made and how heartbreaking the aftermath would likely be?!

She called him directly from her wristcomm. Normally, she wouldn't have access, but he'd made the mistake of giving her the number thanks to her work helping him search for some of the world's missing heroes. It took a few tries, but soon enough Silya heard his heavily accented voice on the other end of the line, "Hello?"

She cut right to the chase, _"Dexter, you better run, because as soon as I get to Tech Square, I'm gonna open a can of Powerpuff and hunt you down_! Do you know where I'm standing right now?! I'm looking at your latest, little Frankenstein and-!"

Whether or not her threat got to him, his tone turned satisfied at the mention of the nano. "Ah, so you've made one already! Good: Send me a report on him in about two weeks. They've been field-tested, but haven't interacted with many people outside of our scientists. I'll pay you for it."

"_I'm not making one!" _Her voice was adamant. She felt her cheeks flare a deep red. Maybe to a handful of people, nanos were just tools, but they were her teammates. She wasn't going to bring one into the world and just watch it melt back into fusion matter right in front of her! She thought Dexter knew better himself... "They're _unstable,_ Dex! I can't even tell if the one you're showing off was purified at all! This is a disaster waiting to happen."

"Silya, I promise, they're perfectly fine. Check your scanners if you don't believe me."

She was reluctant about it. It felt like he was stalling her, and everything in front of her eyes told her all she needed. She listened though, slowly digging out the right devices from her C.A.T.A.L.O.G.U.E. while her employer waited patiently on the comm.

Granted, her handheld system was nowhere near as sophisticated as the tech the scientists and medics used on the nanos, but... Nothing. No radiation leaking from its body, no traces of unpurified matter, no wavering sections along the holographic diagram to indicate a disintegrating structure. No matter how much she scrutinized it, everything looked healthy...

After taking a deep breath, brows still furrowed with confusion, Silya returned to the call, "You've got one minute to explain."

"I would never release a nano if I wasn't certain that they'd stay in one piece," he began, as if to further pacify her before continuing, "These were made to be shapeshifters. As malleable as the fusion matter used to created them. Because we based them more strongly off of those properties, and without a model to go by instead, they're default is the form you see now. We only called them the 'Unstable Nanos' because they don't have a _singular_ form."

The young woman eyed the nano a second time, a little calmer than before. Ever if that was true, it still didn't settle quite right with her. Did that mean that nano wasn't it's own person then? True, the others took personality traits from their models, but if it was constantly shapeshifting than what who it on its own? No eyes, no mouth... It half amazed her that the being was able to react to things at all. "What do they do?"

"In default? Not much. They don't have a nano type-not until they shapeshift into something else-and they're powers also change based on those transformations. Not exactly ideal for combat, I know, but I'm sure you'll make use of their shapeshifting skill alone. It might be good for recon, or if you could use a nano to sneak somewhere you can't. I doubt many fusions would notice much of a difference."

Well, it had had her fooled...

"Please make one, Silya," he sighed, "I understand if you're not comfortable with the idea, but I also know I can trust you to look after one and give the team careful feedback."

She thought it over, biting her lip. It had only been one bad experience with an unstable nano-her Numbuh Two nano-but it had been a close call that scared her enough to be cautious with all of the ones that followed after him. She didn't want to risk losing them, and it would kill her if she let it happen by her own, careless mistakes.

It wouldn't make much of a difference though if she got an Unstable Nano or not, seeing as how every other Fusion Fighter seemed to make one. And a shapeshifter could be a good, new addition to her team, considering the rest of her nanos' skill sets. She felt her shoulders loosen up as she relented, "I haven't turned down any other nano yet, have I? I guess I can manage it..."

She could hear a smile in Dexter's voice, "Excellent! We're finishing up research on a few more as well. If you think you can handle them, I'll send you their data as soon as possible."

The call ended. Silya recomposed herself, then checked in with both the Dexbot and Mandroid to fill her in on any more information about the nano before she gathered the data necessary to create it. She had her NanoSynth on her, but she waited to use the Great Machine itself, still too afraid of the outcome if she didn't. The team had already prepared a special concoction of purified fusion matter in advance, so she didn't need to siphon it from her own converter. She just had to step in and focus her imaginary energy on the new creation.

It wasn't like she had much to go by, all things considered: Just the one outside. She didn't have many extreme expectations for the new nano either. Above all, she just wanted him to be stable and safe. She hoped that wish would carry over as the fusion matter used to craft him gradually meshed itself together like clay in a human shape. Soon enough an oval became a small torso, the torso stretched out to manifest small limbs, and a small person uncurled itself from the mess of shapes-looking around with wide-eyed curiosity as it came into the world.

Her version seemed fairly standard, but the head was more rounded and his head was a slightly lighter shade of green than the one shown off meters away from them. Like the rest of her nanos, he seemed to recognize her instantly, his gaze landing on her with an intense stare. Stepping out of the machine, Silya scooped up the hovering blob and took him over to the side where it was less crowded. Beyond looking around and then back at her, he didn't react much. She didn't think he could speak.

Blob or not, she was still going to give him a nickname like she did all of her other nanos. She thought it over for a few moments, leaning against a concrete wall, then greeted the newcomer with a small grin, "I guess... welcome to the world, Goollio."


	8. Take Your Nano to Work Day

Silya glanced over to where her Demongo nano, Aoi, sat sulking beside her. He was bored out of his mind, but it wasn't like she hadn't given him a choice: She'd told all her nanos that she'd be busy that day and to go do their own things—so long as they didn't leave the Mt. Blackhead base-while they waited. It wasn't her fault that he didn't listen.

The young woman reclined back, nestled comfortably against the wall of a nearby building on the drab blanket she'd stretched out along the ground. A handful of other soldiers were scattered around, buying or selling various wares. Although the base in Peach Creek had recently seen a slight boom in trade, Mt. Blackhead was still the best spot for it. Fusion fighters of all expertise passed through, loaded down with all sorts of gear from their adventures: The ones that couldn't travel far from the jungle were always eager to get their hands on whatever fragments of civilization that they could. Left on standby until her next assignment, Silya figured she'd use the time to earn a few extra taros. Like the people around her, she had an odd assortment of gear lying at her feet for sale.

"I thought you were going to do something important," Aoi mumbled, his arms folded across his chest. His fiery, blue eyes narrowed as he looked up at her with a firm pout, "Why are you bothering with this anyway? We don't need the money."

"You think looking after forty of you little guys is cheap?" she casually replied, "I've saving up." True, they were more than well off for the time being: On top of getting paid both as a soldier and by Dexter as a research participant, she didn't have many expenses because they were constantly on the move. _For now. _ Her thoughts were on _after_ the war was over.

If Earth finally chased away Fuse and the war ended, well... to be honest, she didn't know what she'd do with herself—besides keep working for Dexter anyway. If possible though, she wanted her nanos to share that future with her. The kind of small apartment she lived in before the war wasn't ideal. Silya hadn't said a word to her team about it yet—she wasn't sure what the army had in mind for everyone's nanos or even if she'd be ready to settle in one place by then-but she wanted to make an actual home somewhere for all of them.

"We could be fighting fusion monsters though!" he insisted.

"No, I have to wait for orders," she countered. Honestly, it felt odd. As an independent agent, she was used to largely running from assignment to assignment aside from her work at Dexlabs. With her signing on to the much larger project dealing with Fusion Ice King's crown, however, she felt constrained. Mt. Blackhead was the farthest she could go and only then because she could climb onboard the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. quickly in case she was called in.

And she hadn't been since that first time. Thankfully, she hadn't had any lingering negative effects: The wait wore on Silya's nerves more than anything. If it weren't for that job, she'd likely be mowing done monsters in the Darklands right about then. Instead, she was selling shirts, swords, and accessories.

She bundled her jacket tighter around herself, drinking in the thin beams of sunlight that pierced through the clouds whenever she could. At least the days were getting warmer. It made sitting out here easier. "If you're that bored, you can hang out with the others."

The clear dismissal only seemed to make the miniature demon that much more stubborn. His pout deepened into a frown and he stared hard at the earth. Then, creeping forward, he pulled on of the folded shirts—a black _Gangreen Gang_ tee—toward himself to use as an improvised blanket before settling back down again.

Silya snorted good-naturedly, then scooped him up much to his surprise. Aoi tried to push away from her in protest, shouting at her all the while, but she easily took the shirt and shrugged it over him, tugging his cloak back out from under it. It was so much larger than him that he couldn't even fit it on his shoulders: It would slide off as soon as he lifted himself from the ground. Still, it was warm, and for a moment all he could do was stare at her, indignant, but comfortable.

She always thought of her nanos more or less as kids, but he really looked like one then. She couldn't contain her smile, hard enough as it was to fight back outright laughter. It was hard to believe sometimes that such a little guy could spawn, in part, from the monster that was the real Demongo. She could only imagine all the ways he'd curse her for poking fun at one of his nanos, for no other reason than taking it as a personal offense.

The minor spat had gotten them attention. A couple of fusion fighters walked over to gush and chuckle, only embarrassing Aoi further as he fought with the fabric to scramble out of it. One of them took a quick picture and bought another one of the band shirts. Silya watched her comm as the transaction went through, bid the pair goodbye as they left, and then smirked down at Aoi—who was still holding the shirt in a tiny, angered fist. She showed off the purchase.

"Well, it looks like you at least drew in a customer," she teased him, "Maybe I should keep you around as a model."


End file.
